Accelerator: the Last Esper
by Canoe98
Summary: A confused Accelerator awakens in the world of the avatar for unknown reasons; the first person he meets is an equally sadistic and power-hungry individual as himself - Azula. After a rocky introduction, Azula enlists Accelerator to help her in defeating the avatar; he agrees, but only because he wants to prove himself as the most powerful being in the world. Rated T for violence.
1. Chapter 1

**Accelerator: the Last Esper**

_Disclaimer__: I don't own any of the characters from A Certain Magical Index/A Certain Scientific Railgun or from Avatar: the last Airbender; these characters and their stories belong solely to the creators._

**Chapter 1: Where am I?**

Accelerator awoke with a gasp, immediately griping his chest as he heaved large breaths to calm himself down; his eyes confusedly darted around his surroundings, taking in the new environment. It was dark, but he could still tell that he was outside. He could feel soft blades of grass that spread out through his open fingers; the cold night air bit at his pale skin and blew on the grass, creating a ripple. He was sitting up now and his exasperated heaving had died down to shallow breaths. His eyes eventually peered up and rested on a large, white moon that gracefully levitated in the dark sky. Transparent, ghostly clouds slowly moved through the atmosphere, ridding on invisible air currents. Accelerator placed his palms on the soft ground and pushed himself up from the floor, continuing to stare at the moon as if it would disappear if he looked away. Finally, he tore his eyes away from the lunar circle and looked around more at his surroundings.

He saw organized patches of various flowers and vegetation that were neatly placed into the dirt. About 10 feet away from him or so, he noticed a short brick wall that spanned around the area that he stood in.

'A garden?' he murmured to himself, putting the pieces together.

He kneeled down and gently pulled off a petal from a nearby blue flower; inspecting the piece of the plant, Accelerator glared at it while he remained deep in thought.

'where am I?' he questioned, although he didn't expect anyone to answer.

As he was considering a few possibilities of where he was and why he was there, he heard the repetitive thumping of footsteps that gradually got louder. Lazily, he turned around to face the direction of the noises, not really sure what he was expecting; but he knew that whoever it was, probably knew where he had woken up. A group of men came from around the corner of the brick wall and all stopped once they spotted him. The group of men all wore the same uniform; Accelerator quickly deduced that they were possibly guards of some kind, but they didn't seem to have any weapons on them. Accelerator disregarded this however when he heard a voice coming from behind the wall – a woman's voice.

"What is it? What are you fool doing?" a girl yelled as she angrily emerged from around the brick wall. Like the guards, the girl stopped in her tracks after catching sight of Accelerator, a look of both surprise and anger adorned her face.

"Who the hell are you? What are you doing here?" the girl asked after she regained her composure.

Although her tone sounded calm, the question still came out as a demand; the girl's eyes narrowed when Accelerator remained silent, seemingly ignoring her attempt at interrogation.

"Do not test me, boy," she said in a dark tone, "I can kill you without lifting a finger."

Even though the statement was said with absolute seriousness, Accelerator couldn't help but stifle a chuckle; he glanced at the girl, looking at her overall appearance and features. She had straight, coal-black hair that fell on either side of her head, framing her pale face. Her thin eyebrows firmly rested on her almond-shaped eyes; Accelerator couldn't help but stare into her golden iris that seemed to look back and pierce his very own. She had on clothes that were very similar to the guards' but retained details that made it obvious she was in command. Gold, black, and red were the main color themes that decorated all of their uniforms; a small golden flame-like symbol was present on all of their clothing. The uniforms themselves were quite large and somewhat loose, however, even despite this Accelerator could tell that the girl in front of him had a nice body.

"You can kill me without lifting a finger?" he said, tilting his head slightly to the side, "and who, may I ask, are you?"

The vary question seemed to irritate the black-haired girl as she made a loud clicking noise with her tongue.

"tch. Who am I? How absurd. Don't you know the face of your princess?"

Accelerator's eyebrows lifted slightly in surprise.

"Excuse me?" he said with genuine curiosity, "'a princess'?"

"Indeed. Don't worry, I'll give you ample time to ask for my forgiveness, but only after you beg for your life," she said with an eager grin.

"what are your orders, Princess Azula?" one of the guards asked in an obedient tone.

"Burn him," she said as her grin turned to a full-fledged smile, "but don't kill him. I want to see the defiance leave his eyes as he looks up to his 'princess'."

That final word was said with mocking venom as the guards all crouched down into attack positions. Accelerator lowered his eyebrows in confusion before he suddenly witnessed large balls of fire being shot from the guards' palms; the fire struck him, and his body was quickly engulfed in flames.

The grinning girl waited a few seconds before she finally signaled for the guards to cease their onslaught, and she chuckled to herself as she stared into the bright orange and red flames.

Her excitement soon turned to confusion when she realized that the figure that stood in the fire wasn't moving; however, that wasn't what was strange to her. What was the most strange was that there weren't any screams, shouts of pain, or intense wailing – there was nothing. For a second, she thought that he was dead, and she proceeded to let out a sigh of boredom and turned around. Before she could take a step to leave the fiery event, she suddenly heard something that made her veins run cold.

"Azula?...What a 'nice' name," a voice hissed from behind her.

She quickly whirled around just in time to see the boy from before standing still with the flames continuing to engulf his body. Because the flames that surrounded him were so brilliant, all she could see was a blurred silhouette that confidently stood within the inferno; she couldn't see his face any more, but two piercing red orbs glared at her with an intensity that made her shiver.

"When you said that you could kill me without lifting a finger…is this what you meant? Well then, let's see what you'll do when your guards aren't here to help you."

His words all trickled out from his mouth like daggers, each one cutting deeper into Azula's mind more and more. Suddenly, there was a thunderous sound that rippled through the air, and Azula watched as the fire that once surrounded the boy was now blown off of his body into nothingness.

"Don't blink," Accelerator said as he zipped next to one of the guards.

Grabbing ahold of the terrified man's neck, the white-haired teen slammed his head into the brick wall without any hesitation. There was a sickening crack that was heard as thick blood coated the surface. Realizing that they were under attack, the rest of the guards launched a group strike hoping that it was enough to take the boy down. Without giving it too much thought, Accelerator kicked a small rock that laid on the ground in front of him and watched as it tore through two of the guards' flesh. The remaining men watched in horror as their fellow guardsmen fell lifelessly to the floor; taking advantage of their distracted screaming, Accelerator leapt next to the guards and lightly tapped both of their shoulders. There was a slight delay before the next two guards suddenly exploded in unison, causing chunks of flesh and bone to scatter everywhere. The final guard, after watching what happened to the others, quickly collapsed onto his knees and quietly whimpered to himself as tears began to form in his eyes.

"p..please….don't…..don't kill me," the man said with clasped hands.

"fine," Accelerator responded coldly before he lifted up his foot and slammed it directly into the man's face, causing him to fall onto his back, unconscious.

Azula stared wide-eyed at the carnage that was displayed within the last 15 seconds as she quietly scanned the blood-stained walls and grass. She didn't know what to do – should she attack? should she run? Her thoughts swirled around in her head until the boy in front of her said something.

"shit. I didn't mean to go THAT far," he said, although it was obvious that he was talking more to himself than to her.

He finally looked up, as if he suddenly remembered that Azula was still there.

"heh, now you can show me how powerful you are. I mean you did say that you could 'kill me without lifting a finger'," he said, slowly putting his hands into his pickets as he walked toward her.

He stopped once their faces were inches apart, "show me," he said with an eager grin.

Azula's pupils dilated as she quickly realized something. The boy's face – it was like staring into a mirror; that grin was something that she herself would use whenever she was excited. The thrill of destroying, the thrill of killing, the thrill of having strength – it was something that she knew well. He was just like her.

As if this very realization was enough to calm her down, the young princess took a long breath with closed eyes and looked back at Accelerator. This newfound confidence of hers surprised the white-haired teen to say the least, but he continued to stare down at her.

"What is your name?" she curiously asked.

The thin esper replied without even blinking, "Accelerator."

"Accelerator?" Azula hummed with a smile, "I see. Accelerator, why are you here?"

Upon realizing that she no longer seemed intimidated, his body become loose as he replied, "I don't know. I don't even know where 'here' is."

A small smile graced her lips as she gestured for him to follow her.

**End of chapter 1**

A/N: Hey guys, so this is a new story that I thought would be really interesting to write; having two of the most dangerous and sadistic characters from their respective universes meet was an idea that I thought was pretty cool. Obviously, I'm going to try to stay close to their original personalities, but don't get mad at me if they do something you don't like. Also, I expect every single person who reads this to comment, or Accelerator will show up at your doorstep. Bye!


	2. Chapter 2: The Fire Lord

**Chapter 2: The Fire Lord**

Accelerator was lead out of the garden, warily following behind the smiling princess. He soon realized that there seemed to be buildings that surrounded their location, although they were partially hidden by the cover of darkness.

'Is this some sort of courtyard?' Accelerator asked himself, wondering why he didn't notice the buildings around him before.

The two of them approached the base of one of the buildings where a tall and somewhat wide door was positioned; it was very detailed and well-decorated with gold frames and bright red paint. Slightly above the door was an arch that seemed to be just as magnificent as the opening underneath it. In the center of the door was a circular plate that was attached to a loose ring-like structure; grabbing ahold of the end of the ring, Azula used it to knock against the massive door. Almost seconds later, the large structure began to slowly creek open as the two teens stared blankly at its movement. The door frame fully opened to reveal a long, well-lit hallway that seemed to go on forever; the walls were sleek in design and the floor was probably made out of some sort of granite or marble. Azula was the first to enter, not even bothering to look back at Accelerator who simply shrugged his shoulders and followed right behind.

As he took his first step into the hallway, the main thing Accelerator noticed was that there were guards stationed on either side of the chamber, standing uncomfortably still and straight. There was a long line of them that spanned the length of the hallway all the way down; each pair of guards were facing each other and stood about 30 feet away from the next pair. Although he didn't feel the least bit concerned, Accelerator still wondered whether this was meant to be some sort of ambush.

"Where are we going?" he finally said, ignoring the need to sound nice; his voice had an element of warning in it as he glared at the girl in front of him.

Turning her head slightly to the right, Azula looked back at the irritated esper before she responded.

"I'm taking you to see my father – the Fire Lord," she responded, half expecting him to be impressed, but she was met with a look of pure ignorance.

"the Fire Lord?" he said, still unamused by her grin.

"hm? Let me guess – you're not from around here, are you?" she asked, this time turning a bit more to face him.

Without answering, Accelerator simply shook his head.

"Are you a fire bender?" she asked.

"What the fuck is a 'fire bender'?" he questioned, becoming a little annoyed by this girl's questions.

This time, Azula fully stopped in her tracks, the sound of her halting footsteps echoed down the corridor; she then turned completely around to face him, her hands resting on her hips.

"Do you mean to tell me that you aren't a bender? Then please explain to me how you were able to dispel the flames of my guards?" she commanded. Now it was her turn to get irritated; was this guy joking? Did he take her for a fool?

Accelerator absentmindedly picked at his ear as he responded to the angered princess, "Flames are nothing but a mixture of carbon dioxide, water, oxygen, and nitrogen; your guard's attack weren't that special. As long as I can understand the complexities of something, I can manipulate them to my will."

"Anything?" she suddenly asked, wide-eyed.

"Yeah. Now, I think it's MY turn to ask some questions. Where the hell am I? And how did I get here?" he growled, leaning in closer to Azula.

The fire princess sighed, aware that she wouldn't get anything else out of him until she answered his questions. Well, some of them anyway.

Turning a bit to the side and gesturing to nothing in particular, Azula spoke with a loud voice, "This is the Fire Nation, the most powerful and feared empire in the entire world. Or, more specifically, the Fire Lord's palace."

Accelerator opened his mouth to speak, but eventually decided to remain silent as the fire princess turned back around and walked down the corridor. Following closely behind, Accelerator continued to examine the surrounding design of the walls and the ceiling; bright, diamond-like chandeliers hung down from above and sparkled with the shine of some of the nearby lights, illuminating the hallway. At the end of the large corridor, the two of them eventually came to a second door, about as big as the first, that stood in their path. Copying what she did for the first door, Azula knocked on the wood and waited as they slowly opened into a large room. Upon entering the room, Accelerator immediately noticed the change in mood; unlike the brightly lit hallway, the room was extremely dim and foreboding. Rows of thick pillars stretched from the beginning of the room all the way to the back; each pillar rose up from the ground and reached the ceiling, gradually disappearing into the darkness. Positioned on these pillars were individual torches that gave of very little light; the flickering motion of the fire made the rest of the room seem alive.

Azula turned her head to face him, "Wait here. I'll be back."

With those words, the fire nation princess walked further into the room, following an obvious linear path through the pillars. Finally she stopped, almost at the end of the room, and got down on one knee. It was at that point that Accelerator realized that there was another person with her. Although it was difficult to see through the dimly lit environment, he could tell by the figure's proportion and size that it was a male. While crouched down in front of this man, Azula began saying something, but her words were lost in the echoes of the room.

'Who's that?" Accelerator wondered to himself as he stared at Azula's interaction with this man, "Given that she's the princes, then that man must be….The Fire Lord.'

Almost as soon as his thoughts had ended, Accelerator noticed that Azula had stood back up and was now facing in his direction; she gently motioned for him to enter the room. With a heavy sigh, the white-haired esper begrudgingly strode down the isle that was bordered by the rows of columns. The closer he got to the end, the more details he could make out of the man in front of Azula. Like the girl before him, the man had straight, black hair that sat atop his head and fell to his shoulders; a long, pointy goatee stretched down to below his neck. His jaw was square and prominent cheek bones poked out from the sides of his head; his eyes were low and intense as his brow firmly rested just above them. The man was not smiling, but he also didn't seem to frown; his expression was that of someone who indifferent to most matters.

If Accelerator had met this man when he was younger, he would have been intimidated, but instead he approached the man with an equally indifferent face. Stopping next to Azula, Accelerator looked up at the man, realizing that he sat atop an elevated platform.

"So, you're the 'Fire Lord', right?" Accelerator said, not caring if it was considered disrespectful.

"How dare you?!" a voice suddenly exclaimed, but to Accelerator's surprise it wasn't the man himself.

A slightly smaller, and much less impressive man stood to the side of the Fire Lord's platform, glaring daggers at Accelerator. The white haired boy let out a huff mixed with a chuckle upon laying his eyes on the man.

"You'll speak when you're spoken to, maggot!" the man continued with a high-pitched voice, "Fire Lord Ozai has no patience for peasants who can't follow simple rules."

Accelerator would've simply ignored the man, if not for that 'peasant' comment; turning to face the man, Accelerator's crimson eyes seemed to glow with silent rage through the cover of near darkness. The man's eyes widened in shock and fear before he nervously looked down at the floor. He slowly shifted his attention back to the Fire Lord, not sure what he was expecting.

Fire Lord Ozai straightened himself a bit in his seat before he spoke, "my daughter informs me that you are powerful; much too powerful to be a mere bender. Tell me - Accelerator was it? – what business do you have with the Fire Nation?"

Accelerator simply shrugged, "No business. I don't even really know how I got here."

There was a lengthy silence, as Ozai closed his eyes in thought; he then turned to Azula and spoke.

"Daughter, how confident are you in his abilities?" he asked in a low voice.

Azula bowed her head as she answered, "I have seen his skill, my lord; his power is….terrifying, to say the least. I estimate that, with him on our side, we can easily overwhelm the avatar and bring any other kingdom to its knees."

Accelerator raised an eyebrow at the fire princess' comment; does she think he's just gonna join their side or something? What is she – crazy?

Ozai nodded his head, satisfied with his daughter's report and quickly addressed Accelerator once again.

"Accelerator, I would like to offer you a proposition," he said, staring intensely at the young esper.

"What is it?" the teen blatantly asked, although he was quite certain what was going to be said.

"Given your strength, I would like to enlist you in our forces. With your power, conquering our enemies will be quite easy. In exchange, we will provide you with whatever you may desire; food, shelter, women, power – anything you want."

Accelerator listened intently to the man's words, but was still somewhat uninterested; food and shelter were fundamentals, but anything else seemed boring to him. Just as he was about to deny the Fire Lord's request, he was stopped by Azula's interrupting voice.

"'the most powerful being in the world'," she began, "that's what you want, right? Proving your power to anyone and everyone who comes across you is your main goal. You don't simply want to be 'among' the best, you want to BE the best. Well here's your chance; if you accept my father's offer, I can guarantee that you will achieve your goal. The avatar is widely considered to be the most powerful being in our universe; if you defeat him, then your name will become legend…so, how does that sound?"

Accelerator eyed the grinning girl cautiously before he looked back up at the Fire Lord; although she wasn't exactly subtle, Accelerator had to admit that Azula knew how to play her cards right.

"Fine, I'm in," he said after he shoved his arms back into his pockets.

"Excellent," Ozai said, leaning back into his seat, "now then, if you will please follow the guards, they will lead you to your room for the night. Tomorrow, I shall send a messenger to awake you so that I may inform you of your future duties."

Accelerator inwardly groaned; the mere thought of being awoken by someone else made him aware of the fact that he could no longer sleep in. Noticing that one of the guards was beckoning for Accelerator to follow them, the teenage esper lazily walked toward them. Before he left the room, Accelerator noticed that Azula was not exiting with him, but he quickly ignored that and left as the large wooden doors were closed behind him.

Azula watched the white haired teen leave before she glanced back at her father, who already had his stern eyes upon her.

"Tell me, Azula, do you truly believe that this boy is worth such effort. I still have yet to see this 'power' of his that you claim to have seen."

"Father," Azula began with a lowered head, "I would not lie to you; I have seen him fight with my very eyes. He mercilessly slaughtered six guards in front of me in the blink of an eye; such frightful power cannot simply be ignored."

Her father gently stroked his goatee before he responded, "hmmm. Do you truly believe that he can defeat the avatar?"

"I'm not quite sure, but it doesn't really matter. He's powerful enough to weaken the avatar so that we can deliver the final blow. The Fire Nation shall reign supreme.

**End of Chapter 2**

A/N: hey, guys, how's it goin'? I don't really have much to say about this chapter. It was more like I was getting used to the characters' interactions, so I had to think a lot about the dialogue. Anyway, if you liked this chapter, blah blah blah – comment! Bye!


	3. Chapter 3: A Morning Test

**Chapter 3: A Morning Test**

Accelerator slowly opened his eyes to a bright red and yellow ceiling that motionlessly hung above him; his eyes struggled to adjust to the visual display of colors. Blinking his eyes, the teen looked around the room he was in. Aside from a few framed paintings and Fire Nation posters, the area seemed quite dull, but Accelerator wasn't one to complain. Slowly shifting his body until he sat up in his bed, the esper let out a light yawn as he stretched his arms above his head. Placing his feet firmly on the floor, he finally stood up from the softness of the bed and glanced at a nearby window. Upon opening the curtains, Accelerator squinted his eyes as a bright beam of light flooded into his room; a luminous projection of sunlight was cast on the edge of the bed and on parts of the opposite wall. He peered out through the window and saw the expanse of a city that seemed to stand on the horizon at a grand distance. Flocks of birds flew quietly overhead, and Accelerator admitted to himself that he had never seen birds quite like that before. He remembered what happened the night before: he was taken to his room, informed of the rules of the palace, and immediately passed out on the bed. Even though he didn't show it, Accelerator thought a lot about how he came here or where he was; his questions would keep going unanswered the more he wondered.

Soon, his attention was ripped away from the window by the sound of three polite knocks that came from the other side of the door to his room. Taking his time to answer the knock, Accelerator eventually grabbed the knob and pulled the door slightly open. A dark-haired woman stood on the other side with a small smile gracing her face; after looking at her for a few moments, it became obvious to him that she was a maid. Her hands grasped each other as they rested in front of her body; her attire consisted mainly of a light red dress that was accompanied with a white apron. Judging by her facial features, Accelerator guessed that she was in her early 30s; possibly late 20s, but that was irrelevant.

"What do you want?" he finally mumbled in a rough voice.

"Good morning, sir," the woman happily responded with a slight bow, "I was sent here to awaken you (if need be) and inform you of your schedule for today. His majesty, Fire Lord Ozai, has commanded that you be in the training area within the hour."

Although the idea of being commanded by anybody pissed Accelerator off, he quickly bypassed it and looked down at the woman in confusion, "the Training Area? Where's that?"

"Do not worry. I shall act as your guide and take you there, but first I must suggest that you take a bath. Would you like me to wash you?" she said.

"….no," Accelerator dead-panned, "I'll take a bath when I want to take a bath – no time before or after, got it?"

The woman's smile turned to a wide-eyed look of surprise.

"Now, take me to the training area," he said as he stepped out from his room into the hallway, "I want to have a word with your 'lord'."

After nodding her head in speechless acceptance, the woman quietly led the white-haired boy down the corridor. Turning a corner, the two of them wandered down the hall until the woman made another right, and then a left. Realizing how large the building was, Accelerator sighed thankfully when the woman opened a door that lead to an outside area. He was immediately met with green grass that was slightly being pushed by the wind, aside from a square region in the ground that was reserved for a flat platform of some kind. Several people sat around the square in the grass that surrounded it; one of the first people in the group that Accelerator recognized was Azula. A smirk appeared on her face as she spotted Accelerator approaching the group, and she quickly noticed that his trade-mark scowl hadn't changed from yesterday. To the left of Azula sat two girls, about the same age as the fire princess, who also seemed to catch a glimpse of Accelerator.

The girl closest to Azula had a large smile on her face and large brown eyes that seemed to denote innocence; her brown hair was stylized and well-groomed, including a braided ponytail that fell behind her back. She wore a pink-themed uniform that revealed part of her toned stomach, although she didn't really seem to care. The other girl, who was furthest from Azula, looked to be much more….reserved. She had large, black hair that had been cut into one big bang, almost hiding her eyes entirely. Unlike the girl next to her, her face was hardened into an unimpressed, neutral gaze as she stared at the approaching esper. To the left of Azula was the same man from last night who referred to Accelerator as a 'peasant'; instead of his boisterous ranting like yesterday, the man glanced nervously at Accelerator before he looked down at the ground.

"Oohhh. Azula, is he the one you were talking about before?" the girl next to Azula whispered to the fire princess with a smile.

"He's the one that took out all of your guards?" the other girl questioned in a monotone voice, "maybe you should get better guards. He looks like he could lose to a large gust of wind."

"Ty Lee, Mai, be careful not to underestimate him," Azula said without looking to either of the girls, "believe me when I say that this boy is powerful."

The girls, Ty Lee and Mai, merely glanced confusedly at their dark-haired friend before looking back at the white-haired esper.

As Accelerator neared the square, he caught sight of Fire Lord Ozai who sat quietly on the side adjacent to the other four members; his face was stern and unmoving.

The maid lead Accelerator to the center of the square and immediately turned to give Oai a low bow before she spoke.

"I have brought the warrior, my Lord – as per your orders," she said, respect was obvious in her voice.

The Fire Lord replied with a small nod, "Good. You may leave."

The woman gave a final bow before she exited the square and disappeared back into the building, closing the door behind her. Accelerator didn't take his eyes off the man in front of him as the maid left; he wasn't sure what to expect this early in the morning, but it probably going to piss him off.

"Accelerator, I'm sure you must be wondering why I have summoned you here," Ozai began in his low voice.

'summoned?' Accelerator thought to himself with a hint of anger. Who the hell does this guy think he is? It took every bit of self-control for him to not kill that asshole where he stood – at least for now.

"truthfully," Ozai continued, breaking the esper from his thoughts, "I have yet to see your skills for myself. Although my daughter may believe in your abilities, I must admit that I do not share her…..confidence. Therefore, today I shall test your fighting abilities. You will do battle with some of my elite warriors that I have personally hand-picked; if you defeat them, you shall gain my confidence, but if you lose, then your life is forfeit."

"You mean that you'll kill me," Accelerator stated with a glare.

Ozai narrowed his eyes before he responded.

"Mere threats are beneath me," he said, "but know this: my word is law. Make sure that you don't disappoint me."

Accelerator's face suddenly changed to a small grin, "I see. Then may I suggest an alternate deal. If I can defeat all of your warriors, then you must agree to fight me ALONE. Will you take the deal?"

Ozai's face remained calm, although his hands seemed to form into loose fists as Accelerator spoke. The other four members stared on at the teen's reckless words with genuine surprise; even Azula's eyes slightly widened at the way Accelerator addressed her father.

"Very well," the Fire Lord said, surprising everyone even more, "I shall accept your deal, but only if you defeat ALL of my warriors."

"heh, Fine," Accelerator chuckled, slipping his hands back into his pockets, "bring your 'warriors' out here."

Ozai let out a deep, irritated breath before he raised his arm and made a gesture to someone that Accelerator couldn't see. After a few seconds, a neat, single-file line of uniformed men emerged from within the building and all stopped a few feet from Accelerator. The line consisted of about 20 or so men, all of whom wore red themed clothes; they seemed to vary in terms of size, but, for the most part, they were quite large and relatively intimidating.

"Choose 5 of the warriors before you to do battle with," Ozai stated, "If you are able to-"

"All of them," Accelerator interrupted, "I'll fight all of them. No, you know what – even better – I'll fight all of them without using my hands."

At that moment, many of the men started angrily mumbling to each other in disbelief.

"What? Is he suicidal or something?" Mai said, still with a monotone voice as she crossed her arms.

"Wow! That's a first," Ty Lee said, adding to Mai's comment.

As most of the men in line continued to murmur amongst another, one of them took a step forward to face Accelerator. Almost immediately, it was obvious how large he was; he stood at approximately 6'5 feet, and his muscles automatically tensed up as he neared the young esper.

"You don't deserve to fight all of us at once; I'm all that's needed to put you in your place," he said with a low, gruff voice. He leaned closer to the teen, his hot breath brushing against his target's white hair.

"Fine. Make a move then," Accelerator said with a bored expression on his face.

"hmph, brace yourself. You asked for this!" the man yelled as his hands were suddenly surrounded in flames. He reeled his hand back and threw his fist into the Accelerator's face, causing the fire to explode into bright orange embers. There was silence for a few seconds as many of the other warriors chuckled in response to the attack; Mai rolled her eyes in disappointment and Ty Lee sighed, thinking that the fight was over.

"This is your warrior?" Ozai angrily grumbled as her looked over at Azula, "his worthlessness is evident. I am ashamed that I almost enlisted this fool as a part of my army."

Azula nervously glanced at the Fire Lord, "Father, believe me, I-I saw his power the other day. He-he was able to easily overpower my guards in mere seconds!"

"Silence!" Ozai yelled, cutting off Azula's explanation, "You obviously have no understanding of what real power is!"

"…Real power?" mumbled a low voice.

Everyone suddenly looked to the origin of the voice and were surprised to see Accelerator still on his feet. More impressive than that – he looked as if the attack hadn't even landed.

"REAL POWER?!" his voice suddenly boomed, "I'll SHOW YOU REAL POWER!"

Within a second, the esper stomped his foot on the ground, causing the rock and dirt in front of him to crumble and break. In a massive explosion of debris and rubble, the man in front of him and every other warrior in line were suddenly thrown back and crashed into a wall several meters away. The sounds of breaking bones were overshadowed by the thunderous sound of rocks breaking away from one another. As the area finally cleared, the settling dust revealed the image of several unconscious bodies strewn about the grass.

"If you want to see 'true power', Fire Lord Ozai," Accelerator said with a combination of humor and anger as he created a fist, "then come and fight me!"

**End of Chapter 3**

A/N: Hey, guys, I don't have much to say about this chapter. Please comment. Bye!


	4. Chapter 4: True Power

**Chapter 4: True Power**

Accelerator and Ozai stared into one another's eyes, each daring the other to make a move. Accelerator's crimson irises flashed red with excitement as he focused on Ozai's face; all of his patience was gone and he knew that there was no going back from this point. The Fire Lord lifted his nose to the esper, and his calm demeanor seemed to had left him completely.

"What…did you just do?" the man demanded, uncertainty evident in his voice.

Accelerator growled at the other's question, "don't try to change the subject. Get down here and show me this 'true power' you've been talking about."

Ozai's eyebrow twitched in irritation as he stood up and began to slowly walk toward the skinny teen. Upon reaching the center of the square and looking evenly at Accelerator, he seemed to study the esper, looking up and down his thin figure.

"What you just did," the Fire Lord continued, giving a straight face, "that wasn't fire bending as my daughter described; your attack was more akin to an earthbender's abilities. Your skills…should not exist in this world. What are you?"

Accelerator rolled his eyes in annoyance. "Blah, blah, blah. Let's fight already!" he bellowed as he crouched down in an attack position.

"…very well," Ozai said with closed eyes. He gently grabbed his royal plates that were attached to a flowing red cape and silently removed them from his body; the armor and cloth both fell to the ground, releasing the Fire Lord from their restricting positions as he took a deep breath.

Mai and Ty Lee stared wide-eyed at the event that unfolded in front of them; to be honest, they were still recovering from the power that Accelerator had displayed on the other fighters – it was over in an instant. The two girls looked at Azula, wondering what her reaction was to the situation in front of them.

"Azula," Ty Lee whispered, cupping her hand to the side of her mouth, "shouldn't we, like, try to stop this?"

"No," Azula simply responded, "if we interfere now, it would call my father's power into question. Besides, even though Accelerator may be strong, he is still no match for a firebending master."

Ty Lee and Mai gave each other unsure glances as they turned their attention back to the battle at hand.

"Well, are you going to attack?" Ozai said, practically daring the esper to take a shot.

"You first," Accelerator said with a massive grin.

There was momentary silence as the two fighters remained still, ignoring the felling of the wind and the sound of the rustling trees. Then, almost faster than the eye could see, Ozai outstretched his arm and delivered an humongous beam of fire that engulfed the teenage esper and shot off into the sky. The attack lasted for a few seconds before Ozai finally cut it off an jumped back, knowing that it wouldn't do that much damage to the white-haired warrior. Before the smoke fully settled from his last attack, Fire Lord Ozai created a fiery sphere in between his two palms. Once the attack was fully charged, he waited for Accelerator's immediate retaliation, hoping that he would be able to catch the boy off guard.

"What are you waiting for?" asked a voice directly behind the firebender.

"What?!" Ozai said aloud as he quickly rotated his body around to face a grinning Accelerator. How in the world did he get behind him? No human was that fast, no matter what bending technique they used.

"How did you-" his words were quickly cut off as Accelerator lunged at him with such speed that it almost caught the Fire Lord off guard. Reacting as fast as he could, Ozai threw his fire orb to the ground, hoping that it would provide him with cover; the red sphere hit the ground, causing dirt to rise up and form a veil between the two fighters. Now that Accelerator was partially blinded, Ozai used a perpetual stream of fire from the bottom of his feet to launch him into the air. Looking back down after getting high enough to see the entire battleground, the dark-haired firebender practically gasped in surprise as he saw Accelerator following him into the air. Four miniature tornado currents were stationed on the esper's back, propelling him upward, as he neared the Fire Lord's position. There was no time to think – Ozai quickly raised his arms in front of him, hoping to block most of the upcoming attack; but he was not prepared for such a powerful blow. Once Accelerator was close enough, he swung his fist down upon the firebender's defense, slamming him all the way back down to the ground bellow.

Ozai grunted, feeling an intense pain as he pulled himself up from the dirt; he watched as Accelerator landed back down on the ground a few feet away from him.

"Heh, What's the matter?" Accelerator practically laughed out loud, "where's all that 'true power' you were talking about?"

Ozai said nothing in response as he desperately used his knee to fully stand up; at this point, his face was stained with dust and sweat as he did his best to not pass out from the sheer amount of pain he was experiencing.

"You look a little tired, Fire Lord," Accelerator mocked, "maybe you should sit down, or better yet - get knocked down!"

With that, Accelerator lunged once again at the firebender, but the other fighter didn't seem to show any signs of moving. As he got closer, the Fire Lord lifted his head and yelled out, "I yield!"

Almost as if time had stopped, Accelerator froze in place, a few inches from Ozai's dirt-stained face.

"huh? What did you say?" the esper questioned, although all the previous humor and levity had left his voice.

"I yield, boy," Ozai said with a tired face, "victory is yours."

The man then proceeded to slowly walk past Accelerator and defeatedly picked up his armor and cape off of the ground. The fight was over – Accelerator had won; but the victory seemed…shallow.

The white-haired esper had an unsatisfied look on his face as he watched the firebender return to his seat in silence.

"Tch. Whatever," he said to himself, either ignoring or not noticing the sound of approaching steps.

"Fire Lord Ozai! Fire Lord Ozai!" yelled a strained voice as a young man quickly ran to the royal firebender.

The man, maybe in his mid-20s, got on his knees in front of Ozai and gave the Fire Lord a low bow.

"My Lord, I bring important news!" the man said, looking up at Ozai after raising his head.

"Speak," the other simply said, sounding as though he had not recently been bested in a battle mere moments ago.

"My Lord, it's about the avatar – he has been found!" the man stated, sounding a bit too excited.

"Where?" Ozai said without moving.

"We have received many anonymous tips stating that he is currently headed to Ba Sing Se," the man replied.

"Ba Sing Se?" Accelerator mumbled to himself.

"It's the Capital of the Earth Kingdom; a massive city that is surrounded by a practically impenetrable wall." Azula informed as she walked up to the confused esper.

"I-Indeed," the young man agreed, "it's also been discovered that the avatar is no longer in possession of his sky bison. We have yet to find why this is the case, but it is estimated that he will reach the capital's outer wall within two days."

"A sky bison?" Accelerator repeated, getting sick and tired of being confused.

"No matter," Ozai said, addressing no one in particular, "if the avatar is without his bison, it provides us with an opportunity to finally capture him; without any way to escape, we will bring him to his knees."

"Wait a minute. What if he gets to the wall first? You said yourself that it's 'impenetrable', so how the fuck do you expect to get through?"

Azula's grin quickly turned to a full-fledged smile, "Don't worry. We have a way of getting inside," she said.

"Azula," Ozai said, garnering the attention of both her and the esper, "take Accelerator with you. As per your request, he is now a member of the Fire Nation's ranks – do not fail me."

"Yes, father," Azula said with a bow, "Accelerator, Mai, Ty Lee – come! We have work to do."

She quickly whirled around and headed back into the palace, followed by the other two girls from before. As Accelerator rolled his eyes and began to begrudgingly follow the group, he was slowed down by the Fire Lord's last words.

"Oh, and Accelerator – I expect a rematch," he said with narrowed eyes.

A small grin grew on the teen's face as he listened to the man's statement.

"heh, I'll be waiting for it," Accelerator said before he rejoined the group at the opened door and disappeared into the building.

Walking through the hallway with his hands in his pockets, Accelerator noticed that the pink uniformed girl kept glancing back at him with a smile on her face. He wasn't all that amused, especially considering that every time she looked at him, she would giggle and whisper something to the other girl beside her. He was starting to get pissed off….again.

Finally, the girl turned around once more and looked directly at him.

"Hey – Accelerator was it? – you're strong! I've never seen anybody challenge the Fire Lord like that! You even won!"

"He won by default," the other girl said dryly without looking back.

"But, Mai, he held his own against the Fire Lord – the freaking FIRE LORD! Who else do you know can do that?"

The girl, Mai, said nothing and merely continued to walk forward.

"he he he, sorry about her," the first girl said awkwardly, "she's actually pretty nice when you get to know her."

She then politely held out her hand with a smile, "My name's Ty Lee. And that's Mei," she said, gesturing to the girl beside her.

Accelerator looked down at the opened hand, as if he had never seen what a handshake was before, and just stared back at the girl.

"O-oh! You know what, it's fine. I didn't really mean to put you on the spot or anything. You don't have to shake my hand if you don't want to."

It was sort of off putting to see someone so happy to get rejected; he would have been a bit creped out, if they hadn't all stopped in front of yet another large door. Azula gave the same knock, and the door quickly swung open.

The four of them walked into an incredibly large room; it had to have at least been the size of a football field. The impressive height and length of it all almost made Accelerator speechless. In the middle of the massive room was large machine that sat motionlessly on the ground; large, grey metal plates made up the outer surface of the vehicle, and big car-sized wheels supported it from beneath. At the forefront of the machine was an incredibly big drill that converged to an impressively sharp point with spiraling indents surrounding it. There was no doubt about it – it was a gigantic drill.

"What the hell is this?" Accelerator asked as he checked out the massive object.

"This," Azula said as she gestured to the machine in front of her, "is our way into Ba Sing Se."

**End of chapter 4**

A/N: Hey, guys! I know that I didn't say much on the last chapter, but I felt that this one was slightly more interesting. I'm sure most people were expecting Fire Lord Ozai to get wrecked (and to a certain extent he did), but I wanted to keep him in the story because I have some really interesting roles that I want him to play. Also, I'm so happy that I was finally able to officially introduce Mei and Ty Lee to Accelerator, although they technically 'met' in the last chapter. Anyway, if you liked this chapter, please leave a comment; I'm putting this chapter up on the same day as the previous one, so please show me some love. Bye!


	5. Chapter 5: The Journey on the Drill

**Chapter 5: The Journey on the Drill**

Accelerator couldn't help but quietly gawk at the drill as he followed Azula to the front of the machine.

"How long did this even take to build?" the young esper asked, keeping his eyes on the large object.

"two whole years," a faceless voice answered.

Accelerator slowly turned around to face a scrawny looking man who stood with his hands neatly placed behind his back; the man's hair was a dim grey, a color that went well with his thick beard and sleek eyebrows. A red hair band held the top of his hair in a small man bun, revealing an incredibly sharp widow's peak that pointed down to his forehead. The man's face was difficult to describe; it was neither a smile nor a frown, it was just neutral.

"Oh? And who are you?" Accelerator promptly asked.

"hmph, how rude," the man said, puffing his chest out in a huff, "I am War Minister Qin; I will be overseeing this expedition."

"A lot of time and money went into building this contraption," Qin continued, gently touching the outer plating of the machine, "It is my duty to ensure its effectiveness. I suppose you are the one known as 'Accelerator', yes? I was recently told that you will be accompanying us on our journey. Any new hand is welcome, however, be aware, boy – I out rank you."

Before Accelerator could respond, the man adjusted his shoulders and robotically walked past him, his hands still positioned behind his back. The esper gave Azula a confused glance, causing the Fire Nation princes to let out a slight laugh before she gestured for him to follow her as they all walked behind Qin.

"Due to the fact that you are a new member, it is important that you are informed of who exactly our enemies are; therefore, during our travelling to Ba Sing Se, I shall provide all of the data we have collected over the avatar and his allies," Azula said.

For the next few minutes, the group wandered around the side of the giant machine until they finally found the entrance and quickly walked inside of the massive vehicle. War Minister Qin was eagerly describing the mechanical genius and ingenuity that went into the creation of the drill, but Accelerator quickly learned to block him out. The interior of the drill was just as dark and grimy as the outside; almost everything in sight was made out of the same cold, grey metal as the group continued further. At certain points in the vehicle, Accelerator saw thick steam that seemed to leak out of various cracks and crevices from the metallic walls. Eventually, War Minister Qin lead them to a relatively small room (at least in comparison to the drill's overall size) and proceeded to explain that it was the main control room.

Accelerator rolled his eyes, 'well, duh. Of course it's the control room. It's too nice and organized to be anything else,' he thought to himself.

The room had been fashioned with built-in seats that faced the glass to overlook the front of the drill. Dim, red lights flushed the entire room, and the windows themselves also seemed to have a reddish tint that highlighted the rest of the control area. Accelerator absentmindedly looked around, ignoring the monotonous voice of War Minister Qin as he described the technical complexities and functions of the various things in the room. Even though it didn't really feel that long, Accelerator was thankful when the 'tour' that they had been on finally ended. Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee all sat down in their reserved seats in the control room while Accelerator continued to scan his surroundings.

"It can't be that interesting," Azula said, noticing that the esper was still standing, "sit down. I have a few important matters I need to discuss with you."

Accelerator rolled his eyes before he took a seat in one of the chairs; once he sat down, Azula pulled out a small folder full of thin papers.

"These," she began as she held up the folder, "are every file we have on the avatar. These documents detail information like: physical appearance, bending ability, and estimated threat level. It's practically required for every Fire Nation officer to memorize these papers, so you're going to have to do the same before we get to Ba Sing Se."

"How long will that take?" he asked.

"About a day and a half," she quickly informed.

"hmph. Give me five minutes," he said, snatching the folder full of papers from the surprised princess.

He then walked back and sat in the chair once more as he interestedly opened the file, scanning the contents of the page. His eyes rapidly moved over the inked words and made sure to commit the information to memory; each document had rough sketches of a particular individual along with personal data. There were 5 pages in total; four of them were dedicated to the actual members, while the fifth one talked about the animals involved. Purposely glossing over the animal file, which was mainly about the flying bison and a lemur, Accelerator swiftly moved to the first member on the list.

Subject Name: Katara

Gender: Female

Eyes: Dark Brown

Hair: Dark Brown

Skin: Brown

Affiliation: Avatar, Southern Water Tribe

Bending Abilities: Water Bender

Threat Level (out of 10): 5

Additional info: Sister of subject known as – Sokka

Although there was more information on the page, Accelerator mainly looked at the basic info, especially the category titled 'threat level'. A small image of the girl was positioned at the top right hand corner of the page; despite it being a rough sketch, Accelerator could still make out her generic features. After memorizing the contents in front of him, he quickly turned to the next page, hoping that the next person would be a bit more interesting – but he was quickly disappointed.

Subject Name: Sokka

Gender: Male

Eyes: Dark Brown

Hair: Dark Brown

Skin: Brown

Affiliation: Avatar, Southern Water Tribe

Bending Abilities: None

Threat Level (out of 10): 2

Additional info: Brother of subject known as – Katara

After seeing that this member didn't even have any abilities, Accelerator rolled his eyes and checked out the final two members.

Subject Name: Aang

Gender: Male

Eyes: Brown/Grey

Hair: None

Skin: Light

Affiliation: Air Nomads (formerly)

Bending Abilities: Air Bending, Water Bending, Earth Bending, Fire Bending

Threat Level (out of 10): 7, 10(when awakened)

Additional Info: Has blur arrow-like tattoos on his arms, legs, and head. Extremely Dangerous when in 'Avatar State'; approach with caution.

Subject Name: Toph Beifong

Gender: Female

Eyes: Green (glazed over)

Hair: Black

Skin: Light

Affiliation: Avatar, Earth Kingdom

Bending Abilities: Earth Bender

Threat Level (out of 10): 8

Additional info: It has been confirmed that subject is blind.

Accelerator's eyes slightly widened at the final subject's info; this 'Toph Beifong' was blind and yet still seemed to rival the avatar in terms of potential power. There was not that much else in the file that was interesting; the majority of the page was filled out with all of the possible run-ins and interactions the Fire Nation has had with the avatar. Even though it was relatively unimportant information to him, Accelerator still forced himself to quickly memorize the file before he finally stood up. He walked over to Azula and handed her the folder; she gave him a confused look as she slowly took the papers from his hand.

"Have you read them?" she asked in disbelief, to which Accelerator confidently nodded his head as he sat back down in the chair.

"But that wasn't even a minute," she stated, staring at the esper intently.

"I know," he replied, placing his hands behind his head as he comfortably settled further into the seat.

Azula opened her mouth to say something, but instead she sighed and turned her attention to the red window in front of her.

"How long until we disembark?" the Fire princess suddenly asked as she looked around the room.

"We have just finished the final set of procedural evaluations – the drill seems to be in perfect working order. We are ready to leave when you are, princess," War Minister Qin answered with a lowered head.

"Excellent," Azula said with a grin, "then we shall move out immediately."

"Yes, princess," Qin said as he turned to some officers who were seated in front of control panels and raised his voice, "Disembark!" he commanded.

With that being said, the massive drill slowly began to move forward as the sound of released steam and hydraulics echoed throughout the machine. Azula glared out through the red-tinted window at the moving ground; she sat in her seat with crossed legs and absentmindedly taped her index finger on the arm chair. Ty Lee was still looking around curiously while Mai tried to entertain herself by playing with her kunai. 'this is gonna be a long ride,' Accelerator thought to himself as he crossed his arms in front of him.

The trip felt just as long as it actually was; an hour swiftly turned into a day as the drill slowly moved across the terrain. During this time, Accelerator learned as much as he could about the world that he so mysteriously found himself in. The war, for example, was something that confused the esper to the point of irritation – to him, wars were pointless; why would anyone so willingly risk their life or kill for something so meaningless? Accelerator had definitely ended his fair share of lives, but even he had limits. Killing someone who was defenseless was not his style, and he almost always had a reason for his actions. 'The strong should fight the strong' – that's what he believed, anyway; yet, for some reason, it was so popular for powerful people to hurt the weak….why? Is it because it verifies their power? Does it make them feel more confident? Why? Such thoughts would constantly find their way into his head, but he almost always dismissed them.

He also learned about bending during this time as well; the inherent ability to control the basic elements of nature itself. First, he learned about fire bending, something he had experienced up close with Fire Lord Ozai; it granted its users control over fire, allowing them to generate powerful attacks and land devastating blows. Although it was a fairly strong ability, Accelerator quickly realized that the main drawback was the mind set of most of the people who used it; because it was incredibly powerful offensively, most fire benders seemed to neglect its defensive capabilities as well. The next one was water bending; a relatively straightforward ability that allowed benders to manipulate the shape of water. However, it also seemed to be able to control the temperature of water as well, turning it into ice. Earth bending was the next one; it let users control the very ground beneath them, influencing the movement of rocks and minerals. However, given its nature, earth bending seemed to lack a certain level of subtlety, mainly relying on pure strength rather than tactics. The fourth and final form of bending was Air bending; a technique that gave its users the ability to control the movement of air currents and/or wind. After hearing of the various air bending fighting styles, Accelerator concluded that it was an incredibly passive element, almost never being used for attack purposes. Learning about the different fighting styles intrigued Accelerator, although he knew that he would never use the techniques himself.

At the tail end of the trip, Accelerator benignly walked around the drill, examining the various mechanisms and contraptions; he was getting incredibly bored in the control room, often relying on the sight of the working officers to keep him from falling asleep. He walked down the metal-lined corridor until he got to a relatively large room that was almost entirely empty except for a single person in the middle of the room. To the esper's surprise, the person was Azula. Even though she was the one giving orders, Accelerator knew that she didn't spend ALL of her time in the control room – otherwise she would probably go insane.

The Fire Nation princess stood in a pose with her arms outstretched and her eyes closed. She shifted her weight on her toes as she took a step forward, hypnotically waving her palms in circular motions. Accelerator watched as she stood still for a few moments, taking a deep breath in through her nose and releasing it through her mouth. There was an eerie silence for a few moments before the female firebender stomped her foot on the in front of her and pointed both of her hands ahead to nothing in particular. Suddenly, there was a brilliant flash of light as fire erupted from the tips of her fingers and flowed out through the atmosphere. Accelerator widened his eyes, almost immediately realizing that the fire was blue as he watched the flames twist and finally disperse. Azula stepped back into the position she was first in and took a breath once more before releasing it again. In a fury of fire-based attacks, the princess moved again with her arms and legs moving in tandem with one another; her strikes were quick and precise, moving with a surprising amount of efficiency. Transitioning from her hands to her legs, Azula twisted her torso and flipped into the air, allowing her legs to curl and strike with the same precision as before.

Accelerator continued to watch in awe at the display that was both a wonderful combination of both grace and beauty, but he was careful to keep his face neutral throughout the entire thing. Soon, Azula slowed her attacks and eventually stopped, taking deep yet rhythmic breaths to keep herself controlled. She then sat down on the cold, metallic floor with her legs crossed as her breathing continued. Understanding that she had finished, Accelerator approached the princess, although her wasn't quite sure what made him do it.

"Hey," Accelerator said, stopping a few feet away from the fire princess, "what was that just now?"

Azula, who had initially had her eyes closed, opened one of them upon hearing the esper's question, "what was what?" she asked.

"Don't play dumb with me," he said, looking down at her, "your fire was blue. Why? Every other firebender can only create red flames."

Azula opened her mouth as if she was going to answer his question, but apparently decided against it.

"That is for me to know, and for you to find out," she said with a cheeky grin.

"I am quite curious about your powers as well. When I first saw your abilities, I believed that you were a firebender – granted, a very skilled firebender – but a firebender nonetheless. However, when you battled my father and his elite soldiers, you displayed levels of both airbending AND earthbending. You are the first person who is not the avatar to accomplish this feat, so I believe that you are not a being of this world. Given this, I would like to understand just how powerful you are."

At this point, Azula began to slowly stand up, keeping her eyes on the esper.

"I want to know what you can do," she said.

Accelerator stared at her for a few moments, contemplating her words. He knew that she wouldn't keep on asking him if he said 'no', but something about the way she spoke made him nod his head.

"Fine. What do you want to know?"

**End of chapter 5**

A/N: Hey guys, this chapter was much longer than many of my previous ones, mostly because I had to fit in so much information while still trying to keep the story moving. At this point, I feel like Accelerator's relationship with the other characters in very weak (which kind of make sense), but I want him to develop some sort of connection. Also, I'm not sure when, but I would love for him to go against Toph, mainly because I love the idea of these two characters fighting. Anyway, if you liked this chapter, please leave a comment. So far, the most consistent commenter has been 'awardedall', so I would like to personally thank you for giving be so much feedback. Thanks and Bye!


	6. Chapter 6: Answers (reuploaded)

**Chapter 6: Answers**

The two teens stood facing each other, ignoring the continuous sounds of hydraulics that mechanically caused the inside of the drill to rumble. The room they were in was barren, yet their intense staring filled the volume of the space.

"I want to know what you can do, so tell me….how powerful are you?" Azula asked without much hesitation.

Accelerator's half-lidded eyes spoke of uninterest, but the fact that he agreed to answer her must have meant something. Although his hands remained in his pockets, his demeanor slightly changed; he now stood taller, raising his head slightly above the Fire Princess, and moved his shoulders back.

"This may be difficult for you to understand, but I'll try to explain it as best as I can," he said, keeping his focus on Azula's unchanging face.

"My powers largely depend on 'vectors'," he explained, hoping that she would know what the term meant.

"Vectors?" she automatically questioned, causing Accelerator to mentally slap himself in the face.

'Of course she doesn't know what vectors are,' he thought to himself, 'judging by their level of technology and medicine, there's no way they would know of natural physics or quantum mechanics.'

"Ok," the esper grunted with a sigh, "let's try this a different way. Give me your hair band."

Azula looked up in surprise; she had to admit – he caught her off guard. It was such a strange request, and had it been anyone else who asked this of her, she would have burned them on the spot; but Accelerator was a part of her crew now, so she didn't want to kill him – besides, if she complied, he would teach her more about his powers. Learning as much as she could about his abilities was paramount; in case he ever became a threat, she had to know how to take him down if need be.

Silently, she reached to the back of her head and grabbed at the piece of string that held her hair up. Gently tugging on it, she was finally able to remove it from her hair, causing long, black locks to fall down to her shoulders. Ignoring how loose her head felt now, she handed the string over to the esper who took it from her without saying a word. Grasping both ends of the thin material, Accelerator stretched its length out in front of him.

"The first thing you must understand is this:," he began, making sure that the princess was listening, "every single thing in this universe that we interact with has something known as a 'vector value'. My power essentially allows me to manipulate these vector values by using something known as AIM, which is a field of energy that surrounds me and helps me to inadvertently interact with my environment. I am what is known as an esper – a person or individual who unconsciously emits this energy to produce an AIM field."

As Accelerator was talking, the string in his hands started to curve and bend against the pull of gravity. Then, without any warning, the esper released his hold on the material and let his hands find their way back to his pockets; instead of falling to the floor, the loose string merely floated lifelessly in the air, held by an invisible force. Azula's eyes were locked onto the levitating object, her mouth agape as she tried to understand what was happening before her.

"You mentioned that you are what's known as an 'esper', yes? How many espers are there?" she curiously asked, although half of it was partially out of worry.

Accelerator lifted his hand up and grabbed the string before he responded, "as far as I know, I am the only esper in your world; but from where I come from, there are much more than just me (although they're nowhere near as powerful)."

"…I see," Azula said, focusing back on the piece of string in the air as the white-haired esper pinched it with his fingers.

After removing it from its suspension in the air, Accelerator approached the fire princess and calmly handed it back to her; slowly, she took it into her hand and carefully examined it as if it would suddenly float from her palm. She remained silent as she raised the string up to the back of her head and proceeded to grab her hair into a bunch with her free hand. Accelerator watched as the female warrior focused on tying her hair back into her signature bun; his eyes slowly scanned her pale face and red lips, eventually falling on her golden eyes. Unaware of his attention, Azula continued to tie her hair back, wrapping the red string around her black locks.

"You should leave your hair down more often," Accelerator commented.

Azula glanced up at him for a split second, uncertain as to how to respond.

"Long hair makes it difficult to do battle; I would sooner sacrifice my hair rather than my duty," she said.

Accelerator simply shrugged his shoulders, "it was just a suggestion."

Just then, a uniformed man ran into the room, huffing loudly as he entered.

"Princess! We are approaching the walls; the estimated time until we make contact is 5 minutes! You are needed in the control room!" he yelled.

Azula sighed as she finished her hair and straightened her back. Without saying another word, the Fire Nation Princess aggressively walked past the man and quickly exited the room. Realizing that the princess was heading toward the control room, the uniformed man nervously followed behind her along with a lazy Accelerator. The three of them passed through the steaming pipes and groaning the steel plates that lined the interior of the drill; the machine had been moving nonstop for several days, so most of the air had been made hot and humid due to the continued use.

Eventually, after travelling down the long, thin corridor, they came to the control room where they were greeted by the sight of an incredibly massive wall further off in the distance. Even though they were much closer to the wall than it seemed, the humongous size of the structure skewed their sense of distance and scale. After staring out of the window for a few seconds, Azula sat down in her seat and glanced at War Minister Qin.

"Has there been any sign of resistance?" she asked, her golden eyes piercing the figure next to her.

"Yes, princess," the bearded man sternly replied, "a small team of earthbenders has been sent to our current location."

"Wow. Do you think they can stop us?" Ty Lee curiously asked.

War Minister Qin practically chuckled at the question before he amusingly decided to answer the young girl's injury.

"oh, please, the drill's metal shell is impervious to any earthbending attack. There is no reason for worry." he said, although the final sentence was directed toward the Fire Nation Princess.

There was silence for a few moments, and an air of tension filled the room as Azula stared out the window with a thoughtful glare; her hands met and her fingers slowly intertwined with one another as the black-haired firebender let out quiet breaths. Her eyes were intently locked onto the invisible glass and stared out to the base of the wall.

"Ty Lee, Mai, Accelerator," she suddenly said without looking away from the window, "I want you all to take out the earthbenders. I prefer to not take any chances on this mission."

Mai, who had been lazily toying with one of her daggers, stopped and sighed after hearing Azula's orders. Ty Lee eagerly grinned and immediately sat up from her seat, hoping that she would finally get to have some fun. Accelerator simply let out a snort before he guided his hands back into his pockets. The three of them then left the room with Ty Lee being the only one having a smile on her face as they travelled down to the lower portion of the drill. They passed underneath some metal beams and pipes that spanned across both sides of the hallway; there was a small door at the end with a large circular lock mechanism positioned on its center. Once they reached the door, Ty Lee unlocked it and began to slowly open the rectangular piece of metal. Almost immediately, the three teens were greeted with the intense light of the hot sun as they slowly began to walk outside.

**End of chapter 6**

A/N: Hey, guys – I know, I know, I know! – I am very late with this chapter. To be honest, I don't even remember when the last chapter was added, so I hope that this will be enough. Obviously, I intend to (hopefully) work more on this story, and I will try to get the next chapter out there sooner. Anyway, if you liked this chapter, please comment; if you didn't like this chapter…then I'm going to cry into my pillow.


	7. Chapter 7: The Terra Team

**Chapter 7: The Terra Team**

Accelerator shielded his eyes with his hand as he slowly emerged from within the drill; he was squinting in an uncomfortable attempt to adjust to the brightness of the outside environment. Rough dirt crunched beneath his shoes as he firmly planted his feet on the ground. The expansive stretch of the blue sky was a welcomed sight when compared to the dim and grey hues of the metallic drill; thin clouds curved above the horizon, and the walls of Ba Sing Se seemed to cut the rest of the sky off from view.

"Alright, what now?" Mai sighed, not even trying to hide her boredom.

"I think we're supposed to fight those guys," Ty Lee said as she pointed towards a small group of uniformed figures coming their way.

The group consisted of men who wore dark green suits with yellow trim; round hats with flat tops were positioned on their heads and seemed to be designed with the same color scheme as the uniforms. The members of the team were running in well-organized formations as they quickly closed in on the three teens; it was obvious that they were trained, but that didn't really matter to Accelerator.

"Ha! Here they come!" Ty Lee said as she got into her attack pose.

Like her smiling friend, Mai also decided to initiate her assault as she pulled out sharp daggers from the inside of her robe. The team of earthbending warriors came to a sudden halt about 20 feet away from the three of them, and (almost as if on command) began to send rocks in the direction of the teens. Ty Lee and Mai were the first to react, swiftly dodging and ducking all of the flying pieces of rocks and debris that darted through the air. Accelerator didn't move and instead raised his hand up in front of him with a look of minor annoyance. Many of the attacks darted past the young esper, missing him by several inches, but the rocks that managed to make contact with his body seemed to break apart upon hitting an invisible barrier.

Meanwhile, Mai and Ty Lee were busy initiating a frontal assault; after getting through the sea of earthbender attacks, the two girls finally got within striking distance of the guards. Deciding that they needed to split up, both warriors gave each other knowing glances before they dispersed. Ty Lee was the first to attack, delivering a series of fast yet powerful jabs to various pressure points on the guards' bodies. Her fury of punches caused many of the earthbenders to become limp as they weakly fell to the floor. Mai, on the other hand, used a slightly different tactic when dealing with the rest of the guards. Before any of them had time to react, the black-haired assassin launched several of her daggers at their legs, stabbing them directly in the thighs or the tendons. While many of them fell to their knees in pain, Mai took that as an opportunity to attack each of them individually, knocking them all out with kicks to their temples.

Even though he looked incredibly bored, Accelerator was actually quite impressed by how Mai and Ty Lee handled the guards(but he was never going to tell them that). He watched as the two of them approached him, returning back to their original spots.

"Thanks for the help," Mai said sarcastically as she gave Accelerator an irritated glare.

"Oh, come on. What are you mad for? You won, right?" he said with a cheeky grin that seemed to infuriate Mai even more.

"For some reason, I thought those guys would be harder to fight," Ty Lee stated, although it sounded more like an observation.

Just then, the three teens turned to see several more groups of earthbenders heading for them once again; this time, the number of enemies were nearly triple that of the previous amount, and they didn't look very happy.

"You just had to jinx it, didn't you?" Mai noted with a deadpanned face, causing Ty Lee to give off a sheepish grin.

The two girls got into their fighting stances once again, expecting an onslaught of earthbender attacks and assaults. However, before either of them could jump into action, Accelerator silently walked in front of them, causing both female warriors to give each other confused looks.

"ummm, Accelerator…..what are you doing?" Ty Lee asked with an innocent voice.

"You guys already had your fun, remember? Now, it's MY turn," the esper said with an evil grin.

Slowly, the teenage boy removed his hands from his pockets, letting them hang by his sides; for a few moments, his body remained still as the platoon of earthbenders continued to approach. Then, without warning, he curled his right hand into a fist and reeled his body back, rotating his torso. The next few seconds became a blur as Accelerator lurched his body forward, slamming his fist into the rock-hard ground; the earth beneath him began to shatter and break apart, splitting the very floor into a distinct line and opening it up. Some of the approaching earthbenders were quick enough to dodge the attack, but many of the other warriors screamed in terror as they fell down into the dark chasm. Their voices continued to echo as they fell deeper into the abyss until even their shouts disappeared into the rift.

The remaining earthbenders watched with stunned faces as the ground itself came back together, forever trapping the fallen men beneath the surface. There was a long silence that took control of the surviving earthbenders' bodies, many of them refusing to move out of fear; Accelerator took his time, walking towards the remaining guards until he practically stood over them. They looked up at him, doing their best to hide the sheer terror that they felt at that very moment, but every single ounce of bravery that they might've had was quickly sucked out of them once they looked into his eyes. Two red orbs stared back at them - both were the color of blood, and the way that he looked down at them made them feel as if they were suffocating. Their breathing rapidly increased as they watched the pale boy lean down in front of them, his eyes never once losing their intensity.

"Do you wish to live?" he suddenly asked.

It took a while for the meaning of the question to sink in, but the guards eventually started to desperately nod their heads, hoping that the question wasn't just asked to mess with them.

Accelerator watched the men nod in response, and he smiled.

"Good. Then I need you to do one thing for me..."

The way that he spoke was nerve-wracking to say the least, but the earthbenders waited for him to continue as they listened while holding their breaths.

"...bring me the avatar."

The faces of the men twitched with a mixture of terror and confusion, but Accelerator knew that they would do what he said – after all, fear and loyalty were both reactions to power.

The men nodded their heads again, although this time it was out of some twisted sense of appreciation – he hadn't killed them, but he most assuredly could have. All of the remaining men turned around and ran, some of them stumbling as they desperately followed behind their equally afraid comrades.

Accelerator watched as the earthbenders scrambled away from him until they were merely small dots that neared the base of the wall. Turning back around, the esper let out a sigh and scratched the back of his head as he rejoined the other two female teens. He stopped once he saw the looks on both of their faces; Ty Lee held an expression of innocent wonder while Mai simply wore a look of absolute astonishment.

"Fix your faces," he said, hoping a bit of humor would stabilize them.

Ty Lee shook her head to regain her composure and Mai blinked a couple of times before her face returned to her trademark glare.

"Whatever," the gothic assassin immediately replied as she crossed her arms, "let's just go back inside. It's too hot out here anyway."

"You two can go, but I'm staying out here," Accelerator responded with a side glance.

"…fine," Mai said after a few seconds before she and Ty Lee walked back to enter the drill, leaving the esper standing out in the dry heat with the look of anticipation.

**Later, on the wall of Ba Sing Se…**

Aang stared out at the massive drill that mechanically moved across the ground; he, Katara, Sokka, Toph, and Momo had just recently reached the walls of Ba Sing Se. It had only been a few minutes, but they were eventually greeted with the sight of a Fire Nation attack. After realizing that the earthbenders' needed help to stop the drill, Aang and his friends offered their services to General Sung in the hopes that they could stop this sudden threat.

At the moment, Sokka just came up with a plan to destroy the machine – take it down from the inside. It was a brilliant plan, something that was only made possible by witnessing the way that Ty Lee had taken down a few members of the Terra team. Only a portion of the earthbenders had made it back safely, but almost all of them were seriously wounded. One of the men who was still conscious told them that they had been taken down by two girls(Mai and Ty Lee) but that there was another person who didn't even fight. He said it was a boy, possibly a teenager, who had white hair and red eyes. Aang already knew of Mai and Ty Lee, the group had fought them a while back, but who was this new guy? Had Azula added an extra member to her team?

Aang thought about this as he stood at the edge of the wall and stared down at the continuously moving drill. Suddenly, he heard some commotion and turned to see an earthbending soldier, a member of the Terra team by the look of his uniform, who was shouting to the general at the top of his lungs. Behind the man stood at least four other members who all seemed to be on his side.

"YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND! WHERE IS THE AVATAR? WE HAVE TO TALK TO HIM!" the man screamed as he practically grabbed General Sung by the shoulders.

Aang glanced back at the rest of his group; Katara and Sokka both looked on with worry while Toph merely listened in silence.

The man was hysterical, sweat soaked his forehead and his body trembled with…..fear?

General Sung weakened in the man's grasp and nervously pointed in Aang's direction without saying a word; the man looked up in the group's direction and locked his eyes directly on Aang. The young airbender flinched upon realizing that he was the sudden center of attention, and he watched as the man along with the other four soldiers made their way to him.

"Are you the avatar?" the man demanded, although the volume in his voice did little to hide his vocal quivers.

"Y-yes," the bald boy replied hesitantly.

The man roughly grabbed his arm with a firm grip, "you have to come with me!" he shouted.

"What? Why?" Aang asked, even more confused now than he was before.

"There's no time to explain. Hurry!" he stated once again, this time attempting to pull on the airbender's arm.

"Hey, wait a minute. What's going on?" Katara questioned as she walked up next to Aang. She gave the man a warning look, holding her hand beside a small water container if she needed to attack.

The man mustn't've known that she was a waterbender because he did not release his grip on Aang's arm.

"Hey! Cut it out, let me go!" Aang pleaded as he tried to pry himself from the man's stern grip, "I don't want to hurt you," he said as he continued to struggle.

"I'm sorry, but I can't let you go. If I don't take you to him, he'll kill me!...he'll kill all of us!" the man said with terror in his eyes.

"What? 'Kill you'? Calm down, who are you talking about?" Aang said, becoming somewhat concerned for the men in front of him.

The man visually stiffened up at the question, his eyes widening to the point of grotesqueness.

"…the boy with the white hair," he muttered.

**End of Chapter 7**

A/N: Hey guys, I have just a few things to get out of the way. First, I realized that I uploaded an incomplete version of the last chapter, but have no fear because I've already corrected that. Second….I don't really have a second thing to say, I just wanted to pretend that everything I say is important. Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter; if you did, PLEASE leave a comment. I. Need. Comments.


	8. Chapter 8: Crossing Paths

**Chapter 8: Crossing Paths**

A few minutes had passed since the fiery outrage and most of the Terra team members had finally calmed down, although they still seemed to be somewhat tense. Aang sat cross-legged in front of them, doing his best to understand the situation as much as he could.

"So let me get this straight," he said, leaning forward to engage the soldiers, "all of you were sent out to stop the drill from moving any further, but you were taken down by Mai, Ty Lee, and some kid with white hair. You said that he was an earthbender to, right?" he asked.

"He wasn't just an earthbender," one of the men interjected, "in all of my years of service, I have never seen any earthbender who was as powerful as that boy. Before any of us could react, he single-handedly dispatched more than half of our members. In the blink of an eye, he was capable of slaughtering dozens of elite earthbenders. We didn't have a chance in hell."

"And those eyes," began another member, his voice trembling as he spoke, "t-those were not the eyes of a human. He's a demon….a demon…"

Aang felt a small knot form in the pit of his stomach as he listened to the men remember their encounter; nervously, he glanced up at Sokka and Katara who seemed to share his sudden sense of uneasiness.

He then turned back to the men, "well, don't worry. You're safe now. My friends and I have already thought of a plan to take that drill down so that we can end this terrible attack."

His words did not seem to stifle the men's fears as many of them simple stared down at the floor in silence. Aang blinked a couple times, hoping that at least one of them would show a sign of confidence, but alas, no more words were spoken. The airbender slowly stood back up, allowing the silence to persist before he solemnly walked away to rejoin his group.

"Well? What happened?" Toph questioned, even though she already knew the answer. She had been listening the entire time, and although she felt sorry for what the soldiers had gone through, she couldn't help but be particularly interested in the 'boy with white hair'. Being someone with the desire to claim the title of the 'most powerful earthbender', Toph couldn't help but feel slightly irritated by the news that there might be someone out there who was more powerful than her.

Aang let out a short sigh as he approached the group, "they seem fine – or at least better than they were a minute ago. But this whole 'boy with white hair' thing is freaking me out. I mean, we know that he's probably a new member of Azula's team, but to think that he was THIS strong."

"Not to mention the fact that he's an earthbender who's working with the fire nation; that alone is a bit strange as well," Sokka said as he stroked his chin with a curled index finger.

"Well, whoever he is, he's obviously someone we don't want to mess with," Katara added, "if we're going through with our plan, we have to make sure that we don't run into him."

Toph listened to the group as they spoke, but she remained oddly quiet. There was something that was nagging at her, something that she didn't quite understand….what was it?

"Anyway, guys," Sokka said, breaking Toph out of her thoughts, "if we're really gonna go ahead with this plan, we need to start now."

Aang, Toph, and Katara all nodded in agreement. The team went to go talk to General Sung, hoping that he would be able to get them somewhat close to the drill. Thankfully, the man agreed, and the group was taken down to the base of the wall where several soldiers were waiting in rectangular holes. Upon getting to the ground, the group of children were led down into one of the holes before many of the men wished them good luck and quickly left it in their hands. The hole wasn't really that deep, maybe between 3 and 4 feet down, and the group could see over the top to the drill as it slowly approached the wall.

"Ok guys, you know the plan," Sokka said, turning to the rest of his team, "get to the drill without being seen, find a way inside, take it down, and then get out – is that clear?"

The rest of the group nodded in understanding, placing their trust in Sokka's plan.

"I can create a dust cloud large enough to hide us from sight, but we'll have to hurry because it won't last very long. Also, stay close to me because its going to be really hard for you guys to see where to go," Toph informed.

"Ok, great. You ready, gang? Let's go!" Sokka shouted.

At that moment, Toph leapt up from the hole onto the ground above; winding her arms back and shooting them forward, she pushed a massive cloud of dirt into the air, making the particles float up and expand. Motioning for the others to follow her, Toph led the group directly into the dust cloud and toward the drill. After finally getting close enough, the young earthbender signaled for the others to stop, and she quickly created a small hole that was just big enough for everyone to get into. After each member of the group got in, Toph sealed the opening until everything became black. So far the plan was going well; all Toph had to do was get the team underneath the drill so that they could enter it. Easy.

**Meanwhile, with Accelerator…**

The white haired boy slowly walked alongside the drill as it made mechanical grinding noises to signify its movement. For the most part Accelerator enjoyed the wide open space, mainly because it was something he never really got in Academy city – although he could do without the heat. The large blue sky was a welcomed change too; he never really had the time to appreciate these types of things before – not to mention that he would never think to do so anyway. The wall was much closer now, and he could now make out the tiny figures of soldiers that stood atop the massive structure.

Accelerator sighed, 'If the avatar is gonna show up, he'd better get here quick. I'm starting to get bored again,' he thought.

Just then, he heard faint voices coming from somewhere around him; even though the loud sound of the drill was practically deafening, Accelerator could still make out the volume of people speaking. They weren't very far either; in fact, it sounded like they were only a few yards away from his current position. Glancing underneath the bottom of the drill, Accelerator spotted four discernible figures emerging from a hole in the ground. Helping each other onto the drill, the white-haired esper watched as three of the figures disappeared into the inside of the drill. Although Accelerator could've most definitely stopped them, his curiosity and need for entertainment got the better of him. With a small smirk on his face, the boy confidently walked over to the lone figure that stood underneath the drill.

"Who are you?" the figure suddenly demanded.

Accelerator was slightly taken aback, mainly because the figure wasn't even facing him, and there was not way that they could've heard him over the annoying rumble of the drill.

"Who am I?" Accelerator said, copying the figure's initial question, "I could ask you the same thing."

The figure refused to turn around and instead kept their back to him.

"It's none of your business," the figure shouted, "leave now and I won't hurt you."

"heh, you wish," Accelerator said under his breath.

"I heard that," the figure said as it began to slowly turn around, "I'm going to give you one last chance…..leave now and I won't beat the shit out of you."

Accelerator was surprised once again; not only at the fact that the person was able to hear his side comment, but at the fact that this person was a young girl.

She looked young, maybe younger than him, and she had dark black hair that seemed to frame her pale face. He couldn't see it at first, but upon further analyzing her, it became increasingly obvious that she was blind. Instead of having any identifiable eye color, the girl's eyes seemed vacant and somewhat glazed over – wait a minute. Girl, young age, black hair, blind. She was one of the people on the files that Azula had given him a few days ago, and even though some time had passed, Accelerator could still remember much of the document.

"hm. Where is the avatar…Toph Beifong?" Accelerator said with a grin.

**Toph's POV **

'My Name? Did he just say my name?' she thought to herself.

She had no idea who this boy was, but she was relieved that he was alone. If there had been more people, she might've been in trouble.

Almost unconsciously, Toph sent out a wave of her earthbending senses so that she could get a better look at this person; the waves rippled out through the ground, pulsating once it hit an object and returning to Toph. It was almost like a form of sonar, except Toph was capable of perceiving 3 dimensional objects so long as they made contact with the ground.

The boy didn't look very intimidating; in fact, he was even more unimpressive than Aang. Aside from his height, there really wasn't anything about him that seemed dangerous. His arms were incredibly thin, almost bony, and his body spoke of someone who didn't work out at all.

"How the hell do you know my name? Actually, you know what, it doesn't matter. You've already seen me, so I'm afraid I'm gonna have to keep you from telling anyone," she said.

"Oh I know more than just your name," he chuckled, "but you're right: it doesn't matter."

Toph didn't say anything after that; instead, she raised her leg up and smashed her foot into the ground, causing a large boulder to emerge.

The boy didn't budge, which slightly surprised Toph to a certain extent; most people start to get scared right about now. Her earthbending abilities were nothing to laugh at, and her aggressiveness alone was usually enough to get most people to back off. But not him. He just stood there, calmly watching as Toph tried to intimidate him. Was he just too scared to move? No, she could hear his heartbeat – he was as calm as could be. Why? Why was he so calm?

"Oh, by the way, did the avatar meet those soldiers?" the boy suddenly asked out of nowhere.

"what?" Toph said with a mixture of confusion and irritation.

"The soldiers. I think there were like five of them. Heh, how pathetic. To think a supposedly 'elite' team of soldiers could be so weak," he continued on with a bit of humor in his voice, "they should feel lucky that I let them live."

Toph remained quiet for a few moments in wonder as she tried to think about what this guy was saying. Soldiers? Which soldiers? Was he talking about the Terra team? – about the men who returned, terrified out of their minds. Was he talking about the group that was quickly defeated by some white-haired earthbender? If so, then who was he? Was he just there to watch?

Toph's mind worked overtime as she desperately tried to put the pieces together. Her brow furrowed with concentration, carefully considering the words of the boy in front of her. For a few seconds, her mind went blank…then, a light bulb went off in her head. Suddenly, everything made sense.

"You…" Toph began as she slowly pointed her hand at him, "you're the one who killed half of the Terra team. You're the one who threatened those men. You're…."

Toph swallowed as she spoke the final sentence, "…..the boy with the white hair."

**End of Chapter 8**

A/N: Hey guys, here is the next chapter for ya, straight out of the oven! Personally, I really liked the pacing of the last chapter, so I tried to keep it up in this one. Unfortunately, I couldn't quite get to the whole Toph vs Accelerator battle in this chapter, but rest assured, that will be the first thing for the next one. So, if you liked this chapter please leave a comment, and with that I will bid you adieu.


	9. Chapter 9: Toph vs Accelerator

**Chapter 9: Toph vs Accelerator**

Toph did her best to remain confident, making sure to hide her sudden sense of surprise – she didn't want to give him any reason to think that she was scared, because she wasn't. In this situation, it would make sense for most people to give in to fear, to sacrifice their very honor in the name of survival. But she wasn't most people. The fact that this boy was the same person who took out more than half of the Terra team was simply another piece of information to her. In some weird way, she wanted this to happen. She wanted to get the opportunity to finally meet someone who could challenge her face to face. In order to become the strongest earthbender, it makes sense that she would have to face an opponent who's strength rivalled hers. His voice sounded somewhat young, perhaps only a little older than herself, and he didn't seem to be all that threatening….yet. But Toph didn't care who he was; to her, he was just some obstacle she had to overcome.

"hmmm. 'the boy with the white hair'?" he humorously questioned, "heh. I actually kinda like that name. I think I'll keep it."

"Whatever," Toph said with a dismissive tone, "do what you want with it. It's not gonna save you from this ass-kicking."

The boy stayed silent for a couple seconds; at first, Toph thought that he was thinking of some snarky comeback, but she became surprised at what he said instead.

"Ummm, isn't it gonna be kinda hard for you to fight? I mean, you ARE blind after all."

Toph bit her bottom lip in irritation, feeling a slow rise of anger build up in her body. Was he serious?

She was so sick and tired of hearing this from everyone. The idea that she had to be weak because she was blind was so stupid to her – she hated it; her parents never treated her like they would a normal child, they simply saw her as some delicate flower. Now, because THIS kid is probably thinking the same thing,…..pissed her off!

With silent rage, Toph stomped her foot on the ground, digging her heel into the dirt. A small, sphere of rock shot up into the air and hovered directly in front of her body. Then, following the motion of a whip, the blind earthbender twirled her body around and kicked the ball forward, causing it to zoom through the air. It was going fast. The rock itself seemed to almost break apart due to the sheer force that was pushing on it as it rocketed toward the boy. Toph's eyes narrowed out of confusion for a second once she realized that her opponent wasn't attempting to dodge it; he simply stood in his same spot, almost as if he accepted what was going to happen. Milliseconds passed; the rock was almost at the point of contact, yet the boy was still unmoving.

'Why won't he move?' Toph asked herself. She didn't really care if the rock would hit him, but it baffled her to think that he would just leave himself wide open like that.

Then, just as the rock was about to smash his face in, it just suddenly….missed. There was no point of contact, no cry of pain, no satisfying win; it just missed. Toph quickly replayed the event in her head; there was no way she could've missed, he was only 20 feet away from her. He should be on the ground right now, writhing in pain, and yet he continued to stand.

"What?" the boy's voice questioned, "was that all you've got?"

Toph gritted her teeth and hunched her shoulders, readying herself for the next set of attacks. Placing her palm firmly on the ground, a massive boulder emerged from the dirt-covered surface and took its place in front of Toph. Striking the back of the boulder with her fist, the young earthbender propelled the massive object forward, waiting as it quickly slipped across the rough, rocky plain. Again, the boy refused to move. There was a sudden 'thud' as the boulder made contact, but almost as soon as it had hit its target, the massive rock exploded into several pieces.

"I guess it's my turn now, right?" the boy said in a cocky voice as he slowly began to walk forward.

Alerted by his sudden approach, Toph quickly summoned a large wall from the ground that divided the two warriors from each other.

'That isn't gonna hold him for long,' Toph nervously thought, hoping that she could come up with a plan of attack before he got through.

'what the hell is with this guy? Is he even a bender? He hasn't moved at all since the beginning of this fight; it's like he doesn't even need to try. Shit. He hasn't even really attacked me yet, and I can already tell that he's strong. Too strong. Maybe there's a way I can evade him. He probably doesn't know how to sense things like I can; I might be able to create some sort of screen out of dust. It won't stop him for long, but it might give me enough time to escape.'

Her thoughts were starting to get jumbled up, and she had to focus quite a bit to keep her own mind organized. She took a deep breath, calming the rest of her body in the process. She had to make her move soon –

"yo," someone gently whispered behind her.

In one swift motion, purely out of survival instinct, Toph leapt away from the voice in order to give herself more room. Once she landed far enough away, she shifted her attention back to where the voice came from; using her earthbending senses to scope the environment, she was shocked to see the white haired boy standing mere inches from where she was.

"What th-" Toph began before she felt a powerful blow delivered to the underside of her chest. She sailed backwards, her feet leaving the ground as she went, and was roughly stopped by slamming into her own wall. Sliding down the vertical rock surface to the dirt-covered floor, the blind earthbender desperately gasped for air as her hands clutched at her chest. Eventually, air fully returned to her lungs, but the immense pain continued to persist.

What just happened? Fear suddenly overtook her sense of confusion as her brain struggled to grasp what just occurred. Toph was not really known for being afraid, but this was a special occasion – this boy was dangerous. It wasn't the attack that scared her the most, although it hurt incredibly bad. No, what terrified her most was his speed – it was otherworldly. It's not as though she was distracted; on the contrary, she was the most cautious she had ever been in a battle. She knew exactly WHERE he was and WHAT he was doing, but….for a split second, almost as if she blinked, he was there and then he wasn't. It was practically instantaneous; there was no sound, no movement, no hint whatsoever at the fact that he changed locations. It was as if time itself simply jumped ahead.

Groaning from the throbbing pain that she felt in her chest, Toph struggled to get to her feet, using her hands to help her up. Before she could even fully stand, she heard a terrifyingly loud 'crunch' sound coming from directly next to her head. Even though her senses were somewhat dull from the last attack, Toph could still tell that the boy had just punched a portion of the rock wall that was directly beside her. Again, she didn't hear him move.

"Is this seriously all you got?" he growled. All of the levity had left his voice now, and his words were now angry and piercing.

"The Fire Nation really considers you a threat? Pathetic," he said.

'Pathetic?' Was he really calling her 'pathetic'? Toph's lips formed into a thin line and her eyebrows narrowed over her empty eyes.

"Pathetic?" Toph repeated, "I'M pathetic? Are you kidding me?!"

Putting all of her anger into one final attack, Toph outstretched her arms in the boy's direction, causing an extrusion to emerge from the wall and slam into his body. Reacting immediately, he roughly dug his feet into the ground in order to withstand the attack; although he wasn't harmed in any way, he still slid back several feet.

**Accelerator's POV**

Regaining his footing after the sudden surprise attack, Accelerator straightened his body and gave the girl a strange look. Obviously, she couldn't exactly 'see' his expression, the young earthbender shifted uncomfortably in her spot.

Accelerator cocked his head to the side, slipping his hands comfortably back into his pockets as he remained silent. He wasn't quite sure why, but there was something about the girl that seemed to fascinate him; this nagging feeling clawed at his mind as he continued to stare at the girl. Although she was quite small, not to mention young, she was definitely strong – or at least 'stronger' than most of the other benders Accelerator had fought. To be honest, she was considerably harder to deal with than the entire Terra team.

"What's your deal?" he suddenly asked, garnering the blind girl's attention.

"What…the hell…are you talking about?" she shot back, doing her best to suppress the pain that she was feeling in her chest.

"Well, if you met the men from before then they must've told you who attacked them. If that's the case, then you knew who I was already and how powerful I am, yet you still decided to challenge me – why?"

The girl was quiet for a few seconds, but Accelerator could tell that she was thinking about how to answer.

"You single-handedly defeated an entire team of elite earthbending warriors," Toph began, "you were a threat – that's all."

"….no, it's not," Accelerator said after a short pause, "you just wanted to test yourself against me, isn't that right? I can tell, nobody would risk their life in a fight unless they got something out of it."

Toph's mouth curled into a frown and rest of her face stiffened at the esper's observation. Sighing, the blind earthbender lowered her head in defeat, her black hair loosely falling in front of her face to cover it.

"Fine, you got me….congratulations!" she mumbled with bitter humor, "it's not like you care anyway. Just finish this and kill me already."

Unlike her voice from before the fight that was full of aggression and confidence, the young girl now spoke with a tone of defeat and utter lifelessness. Accelerator blankly stared at her figure, bruised and beaten on the floor. There was a strange feeling that emanated from within his chest as he continued to scan the girl's beaten body; he had won, but it felt as though the victory was empty. He could definitely kill her now, like he initially planned to, and her death would hold little significance to him; he could leave her here and ignore the fact that she could inevitably die, and he would still sleep soundly at night. So why? Why was he suddenly feeling this way?

The girl's body slumped against the rock wall, her arms and neck became limp – she was unconscious. Accelerator slowly approached the body, his arms still in his pockets as he overlooked the figure.

'Damn,' he thought to himself, 'I really did a number on her. It looks like she might have a few broken ribs.'

The girl's otherwise plain skin had been tainted with thick scratches and some areas that were already starting to bruise. Her hands were stained with a combination of blood, sweat, and dirt that smeared on her skin.

"why the hell am I doing this?" Accelerator sighed as he leaned down and picked the girl up into his arms – thank goodness she was so light.

Staring down into the girl's closed eyes, the same unfamiliar feeling returned to him, but Accelerator did his best to ignore it. Firmly carrying the girl's limp body, the white haired esper walked back to the drill, hoping that there would at least be a medic on board.

**End of chapter 9**

A/N: Although I know that there were people who were so excited to see Accelerator dominate Aang, that will have to wait. Even though I intended for Accelerator to be OP, I also wanted to center this story largely around his personality – especially the 'good' parts, in order to show how complex his character is. Don't worry though, he will still be somewhat ruthless and blood-thirsty in this story, but he's not going to KILL any of the main characters…..maybe. Anyway, if you liked this chapter, please comment and tell me what you thought.


	10. Chapter 10: Infiltrators in the Drill

**Chapter 10: Infiltrators in the drill**

Walking back into the giant hull of the drill, with the unconscious girl in his arms, the white-haired esper roamed the halls looking for somewhere to place her; the machine was so large and expansive, he was bound to find some sort of medic bay – after all, it was well known that this expedition may lead to possible injuries. Approaching a man who he saw working on one of the pipes, Accelerator called out to him over the constant hissing of the hydraulics. The man was wearing protective goggles and proceeded to remove them upon hearing Accelerator call to him; the majority of his face was darkened by the constant contact with soot and steam except for two circles around his eyes where the goggles used to be.

"Hey, you know where the medic bay is?" Accelerator questioned.

The man glanced down at the unconscious girl in his arms before looking back up at the boy's neutral face.

"Uhhh, it's further down the hall; make a left and it should be on the left side," he hesitantly informed as he weakly pointed behind himself.

Without saying a word, Accelerator silently walked past the confused mechanic and made his way down the corridor, turning left as he had been told. Taking constant, deliberate steps, the teen finally reached a door with the words 'Emergency Medical Room' imprinted into the metal. Kicking the door open as he held Toph in his arms, Accelerator wandered into a moderately sized room that had beds equally spaced from each other in rows; the beds were made of thin mattresses and they were all adorned with white sheets. A man, possibly the doctor, sat quietly at a desk, isolated from the rest of the beds in the room – he looked up as soon as Accelerator kicked open the door to enter. He continued to watch as the white-haired boy set the girl down comfortably onto the nearest bed.

"May I ask what's going on?" the man said as he gently removed a pair of glasses from his brow.

"This girl may know the whereabouts of the avatar. I need her alive so that I can interrogate her for more information," Accelerator lied – although it wasn't a total lie; he definitely planned on asking her about the avatar, but the usage of the word 'interrogate' was strictly for gaining the man's trust.

The doctor, who wore a relatively long gown-like robe, walked over to the unconscious girl and examined the state of her; he let out a low, thoughtful 'hmmm' as he inspected the beaten body.

"How long ago was she conscious?" he asked.

"Approximately 20 minutes ago," the boy curtly answered.

"hmmm," the doctor murmured before returning his gaze back on the young earth bender.

Letting out a reserved sigh, he walked over to a metallic cabinet and opened the metal doors to reveal a small space containing various forms of medicine.

"The girl will be fine, or, rather, I should say that she will live," the doctor said as he grabbed a small box containing a number of tools and containers, "I may be able to repair most of the external damage, but her ribs will take time to heal."

As the man began to shuffle through the various medicines, Accelerator stared down at Toph's unconscious face; a light bruise was evident on her cheek already, and a small cut formed across her chin. Suddenly, as if to break the silence, the entire room began to rumble and shake; confused, Accelerator glanced over at the doctor, who seemed to be just as confused as he was. Just then, a voice echoed through the announcement system – it was War Minister Qin, although the volume seemed to be slightly disconcerting.

"Attention all attendants," the voice began, "many of you may have just experienced a minor shake in your relative area. Worry not, it is merely due to the drill's impact with the wall. Everything is under control."

With that, the voice suddenly hung up, and Accelerator gave a short sigh as he looked over at the doctor.

"How long until she's awake?" he asked.

"Hard to tell at this point. It could range from a couple of hours to several days," he stated as he continued to pick out containers of medicine, "In any case, there's not much more you can do here. You can resume your station, and I will contact you when needed."

Not wanting to argue, Accelerator merely shrugged his shoulders as he proceeded to exit the room, making sure to close the room behind him. As he walked down the hall way in search of his way back to the command center, he questioned his motives regarding saving the blind girl. It was very strange behavior on his part, and he was aware of it, but it was quite concerning to him that he couldn't quite identify his reasons for doing so. Accelerator stared down at the metallic floor in thought as he slowly walked through the corridor; he looked up as soon as he heard the running sound of footsteps. There, several yards from him, ran Azula who was closely followed by Mai and Ty Lee.

"You. Follow," the fire nation queen assertively ordered.

"Why? What is it?" Accelerator questioned as he trailed behind the three girls.

"Someone's attempting to sabotage the drill, and I'm certain that it's the avatar," she quickly informed.

An excited grin suddenly formed on the young esper's lips, "really?" he asked, intrigued by the notion that the avatar was so nearby.

"I thought you'd like that," Azula commented with a light chuckle as all four of them sprinted down the hall.

"Where is he?" Accelerator asked.

"He's in the central section of the drill – he's cutting the braces to stop the machine from moving."

"I see. I'll meet you there," he said as he suddenly took off, disappearing from next to the girls and zooming down the corridor, out of sight.

As he raced through the hallway, the blurred images of the walls passed by him at remarkable speeds; after making several sharp turns and avoiding a few men who were in the halls, Accelerator eventually came to a thin door at the end of a hallway and effortlessly stopped in front of it. The door looked quite standard, lacking any differing features that would identify it as relatively important, accept for a wheel like mechanism that acted as the door handle. Gripping both sides of the wheel, Accelerator turned it counter-clockwise, making sure to fully unlock it. A low-pitched clicking sound came from the bolt, signifying that it was now unlocked; grinning eagerly, the esper slowly opened the door. The door led out onto a bridge-like walkway that was hung by thick metal wire over a wide open area; the space bellow him was incredible far down, but Accelerator ignored it. He soon realized that there had been faint voices that were echoing throughout the area; following the sound, he looked over the walkway and saw a group of about three people who were talking with one another.

A smile returned to his face; he recognized all of the three individuals from the profiles that he read. One of them was dark-skinned had a ponytail and was equipped with a boomerang on his side – it had to be 'Sokka'. The second was a girl, and she seemed to mirror the first boy in terms of skin tone and hair color – Katara. Which meant that the third one was…

The avatar.

Reacting quickly upon realizing the identity of who was below him, the teenage esper jumped from off of the hanging walkway and began to fall down, keeping his eyes on the group as he went. Landing down on the surface a few feet from them with a loud 'thud', Accelerator grinned happily at the surprised faces of the group.

"Hey there," he said.

"Who the heck are you?" Sokka screamed, "and where did you come from?" he asked, looking up at where Accelerator had jumped from.

"It doesn't matter, Sokka," Katara stated as she slowly reached for the water container at her side, "our cover's been blown."

Taking a closer look at the esper, Aang's eyes suddenly widened as he observed the white hair that adorned the teen's head.

"the boy with the white hair," he whispered to himself.

"So, you're the notorious 'avatar Aang' I've heard so much about," Accelerator commented as he focuses his attention on the bald boy.

"I hear you're powerful," he said as he slowly began to approach the group, "I'd like to see just how powerful you are first hand."

"Not today, you won't!" Katara yelled as she launched a water whip at the esper.

The attack seemed to be blocked by an invisible force as small pellets of water fell from Katara's whip. The stunned faces of the group said it all – there was no way they were going to beat him. Accelerator's approach continued, causing the three teens to simultaneously back away from him.

"Why are you doing this?" Aang suddenly blurted out.

"huh?" Accelerator said in a confused tone.

"I said 'why are you doing this?' Don't you know how many people are going to die if you do this?" he said.

Accelerator's eyebrows slightly lifted at Aang's attempt at democracy.

"So? Why should I care?" he questioned.

"There are innocent people behind that wall," the airbender continued to implore, "they don't deserve this. If you're doing all of this just to get at me, then I'll give myself up."

Accelerator slightly tilted his head upon hearing the avatar's words, "you're not gonna fight me, huh? You're just gonna give up?" he asked.

Aang silently shook his head, "if that's what it takes to keep you from hurting innocent people, then 'yes', I give up."

Accelerator crossed his arms in front of him in thought as he starred at the airbender in front of him. The boy was definitely brave, but such qualities were unimportant to the esper at this particular moment; the entire reason he went on this expedition was to fight the famed 'Avatar', but if he was unwilling to fight then this whole thing was pointless. Unless, of course, he could force the boy to fight; yes, that might actually work. It would be even better if he could force Aang into the avatar state – oooh, how interesting that would be.

"Sorry, I can't accept you giving up, unless you're doing it while screaming!" Accelerator yelled as he rushed the group of three.

Aang was the first one to react, thrusting his arms foreword to cause an immense rush of wind headed for the esper. Easily dodging the attack by stepping to the side, Accelerator continued to push his attack until he was directly in front of a surprised Aang; he lifted his hand up in preparation of an attack, but the young airbender swiftly moved out of the way, just in time for Accelerator's attack to strike a nearby metal beam.

"tch. You're a fast one," Accelerator noted as he watched the airbender retreat to the exit with his two friends. Before they could quite get to the door, however, a stream of fire cut them off from the exit; glancing up at the source of the attack, the three kids gasped upon seeing Azula atop a ledge smiling down at them. Mai and Ty Lee stood behind her.

"Wow, Azula, you were right – it IS the avatar. And friends," Ty Lee said, although the end of the statement held some flirtatious tone to it as she winked at Sokka.

"Hey," the water tribe boy meekly greeted as he gave her a gentle wave.

"Took you long enough to get here," Accelerator said with a grin.

"I suppose it wasn't long enough," the princess sighed, "I thought you would've already defeated the avatar and had his friends on their knees by now."

"What can I say, I'm a slow worker," he retorted with shrugged shoulders.

"you won't get away with this," Aang angrily muttered.

"Oh, please," Azula said as she rolled her eyes, "what can you do to stop us? I've read your file, you barely have a grasp of three of the elements, let alone all four. There's no way you have a chance of defeating us."

Accelerator slowly blinked upon hearing the words of the fire nation princess. None of the files he was given ever revealed anything about the avatar only being able to use two of the elements. The esper remained silent, however, as Azula finished her rant, but strange thoughts began to swirl around in his head as he stared up at the fire nation princess. Why would she lie to him about the avatar's abilities?

He wasn't given much time to consider the answer when Aang suddenly sent a burst of concentrated wind at the three girls on the ledge; quickly reacting to the attack, all three of them jumped off of the platform, successfully dodging the wind currents. Upon landing, Azula glanced at where the avatar was only to find that all three of the teens had fled the room.

Gritting her teeth in slight anger, Azula pointed her finger in the direction of the avatar's escape, "Mai, Ty Lee – you two go after the water tribe girl and her weakling brother!"

Nodding in understanding at her orders, the two girls sprinted out the door in pursuit of the fleeing targets.

Azula turned her head back to face Accelerator as she spoke, "You and I shall find the avatar."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," the esper said as he absentmindedly scratched the back of his head, "but first, I would like to know something."

The fire princess let out a sigh of annoyance, "what? What is it?" she questioned.

Almost as soon as she finished her sentence, Azula felt a strong hand aggressively grasp her neck and shove her into a nearby wall; her body was being held up by a single arm and she stared back at the esper in utter surprise.

"I wanna know why the FUCK you thought you could lie to me and get away with it," Accelerator growled with an infuriated grimace on his face.

Azula desperately scratched at his wrist in an effort to release his hold on her, but instead his grip began to tighten.

"None of the files you gave me ever said that the avatar didn't have full control of his powers. You knew, didn't you? You knew that if I was aware of the avatar's limitations, I wouldn't fight him seriously. So you decided to trick me into believing that he was a worthwhile challenge by altering the files. I see right through you – your goal the whole time wasn't to provide me with a challenge, it was to control me."

Azula's eyes became much more narrowed the more Accelerator spoke, and she eventually stopped scratching at his wrist; letting her hands fall to her sides, the Fire Nation princess spoke with a forced grin despite the weight of his hand on her throat.

"…and you fell for it," she whispered.

Accelerator's blood-red eyes looked up into the defiance of her golden orbs as the two of them stared back at one another in silence.

**End of Chapter 10**

Author's Note: _Long time, no see, everyone! The time has come for me to grace you with another two chapters before I retreat back into my cave for another year or so – you're welcome. In all honesty, it's been so long since I've written for this story, so I forgot everything I was planning to do for it. I think I'm just gonna wing it. Anyway, if you liked the chapter, please leave a comment, and I'll do my best not to get offended by it_.


	11. Chapter 11: Pursuit

**Chapter 11: Pursuit**

Accelerator's angry grimace slowly turned into a passive glare and then into a small grin the more he looked at the Fire Nation princess. The more he thought about it, the more he became impressed by Azula's ingenuity; she knew that she couldn't use force to get him to cooperate, so she went with the next best thing – manipulation.

"I have to admit, you are quite an interesting person," Accelerator said as he intently looked over Azula's face. She had kept up her defiant act, glaring at him the whole time as he spoke.

Suddenly releasing her, Accelerator watched as the black-haired girl fell to the floor with a thud, holding her throat as she desperately gasped and coughed for air.

"This is a warning," the white-haired esper said as he stared down at the princess, "don't EVER think you can control me again. If you can manage that much, I'm sure we'll get along just fine."

"Now come on," he said as he headed for the door, "you wouldn't want the avatar to get away, would you?"

Azula growled internally at his words and glared at him as he approached the door; gently rubbing her throat in an effort to soothe the pain, the female fire bender slowly stood up from the cold metallic ground and worked to regain her composure. Following right behind the esper, Azula kept her eyes on him as the two of them hurried down the corridor; a man down the hall looked up at them, the tools that he carried signaled to Accelerator that he was most likely an engineer.

"Yo, did you see a bald kind come down this way?" the esper questioned unenthusiastically.

Without speaking, the man nodded and proceeded to point further down the hallway towards a flight of stairs that were positioned at the end of the corridor.

"He's heading for the upper exit - it leads to the top of the drill," Azula observed, seemingly ignoring what happened mere moments ago.

Accelerator stared on in thought; what purpose would he have to go to the top of the drill? Was he thinking of escaping? No, that's not it – he was so desperate to help the people beyond the wall, he wouldn't simply leave.

"He's planning something," the esper said as he began to walk down the hall to the stairs, "he wouldn't just escape without further trying to stop the drill."

"How do you know?" Azula questioned.

"I've met people just like him before; these 'heroes' will do their utmost to defeat those who they consider 'evil', even going so far as to sacrifice themselves in some self-righteous manner. It's disgusting."

Azula said nothing, but she gave the stoic esper a strange look as the two of them finally reached the stairs and worked their way up the steps. Reaching a platform that lead to a small ladder, the two teens saw a metal hatch on the ceiling that had been fully opened.

"I guess he exited through here," Accelerator stated.

"My, how 'observant' you are," Azula stressed sarcastically as she rolled her eyes and headed for the ladder.

Grabbing a hold of each rung individually, the Fire Nation princess climbed up through the open hatch and emerged out from the interior of the drill. The hot, dry air bit at her pale skin as she confidently rose from the walls of the metallic machine; almost immediately, she spotted the avatar, he stood atop the length of the drill closer to the perimeter of the wall. He seemed to be using a strip of water as a saw, cutting into the hull of the drill; Azula was unaware of what the boy was trying to accomplish, but she didn't waste any time in going in for the attack. She darted toward the boy, small flames of blue fire flickered in her hands as she approached her target; pointing two of her fingers in the air bender's direction, Azula shot out a blue ball of fire that moved swiftly through the air. The avatar, however, was alerted to the oncoming attack and reacted quickly to it, creating a wind barrier to disperse the flames upon impact.

Accelerator reached the top of the ladder just in time to see the two warriors about to engage in battle. The esper had to admit, because he hadn't really seen the avatar's skills in action, he was quite excited to witness the full extent of Aang's abilities. Standing up fully after emerging from the drill, Accelerator placed his hands in his pockets as he proceeded to watch the battle unfold.

**Meanwhile, back in the Emergency Medical Room…**

Toph lay motionless on the thin mattress, the cuts and bruises that she received from her encounter with Accelerator had now been wrapped in thick strips of cloth to stop the bleeding. Certain areas of her skin had been cleaned to keep the injuries from becoming infected, and the heavy clothes she once wore had now been replaced by a white shirt and pants that worked to regulate her body temperature. Her body slowly began to become more conscious as her hands suddenly twitched and her eyes gradually opened; almost immediately, the young earth bender knew she was in an unfamiliar place – the room smelled of medical supplies and chemicals. Slightly groaning as she attempted to sit up, a sudden breath escaped her lips as a shot of pain emanated from her side. Feeling her tissue for where the pain was coming from, she was surprised to rest her fingers upon a cotton strip that had been wrapped around her entire torso.

"Some of your ribs were broken," said a voice from somewhere in the room, "I suggest you not tamper with those strips, or else you might slow down the healing process."

Now ignoring the pain, Toph's main concern became the identity of the person who spoke.

"Who are you?" she asked, allowing her senses to locate the source of the voice.

"I'm just a humble doctor," the voice said as it stood up from a chair, "you know, you took quite the beating. I'm surprised you woke up as soon as you did. That kid really did a number on you?"

"Kid?" Toph questioned before the memories of her battle with the white-haired boy soon flooded back into her mind.

"Damn!" she suddenly cursed as she tried to move her body off of the bed.

She suddenly stopped as she felt the grip of metal shackles around her wrists; the coldness of the metal practically burned as it pressed against her skin.

"I must apologize for such primitive methods of restraint, but ensuring your presence here is of utmost priority." The voice spoke as it neared Toph's bed, the pounding of footsteps on the metal ground alerted her ears.

"Because you were sleeping, I had no need to utilize any sedatives; however, now things have changed," the man calmly said as seemed to search a nearby container for something.

"Now that you are fully awake, I'm afraid that the introduction of sedatives is required," he stated.

The sound of him rummaging around in the container had stopped, but this filled Toph with even more worry; whatever he was looking for, he had found, and this couldn't be good for her. The footsteps resumed their pace, slowly taking their time as they approached the restrained earth bender.

"What are you going to do to me?" Toph questioned, struggling to hide the nervousness in her voice.

This time the voice refused to reply, and the footsteps stopped directly next to the bed. Suddenly, Toph felt a hand grip her wrist and her eyes widened in protest.

"No! Wait-"

Before she could finish, there was a loud crash along with the man grunting out in pain as he fell to the ground.

"Phew! That was close. Way to take him down, Katara!" yelled a young, male voice.

"Katara? Sokka!" Toph screamed, thankful that they had shown up.

"Toph, how did you get here?" Katara questioned as she glanced at the shackles that adorned the earth bender's wrists, "I thought you were still outside."

"Yeah, yeah, I'll fill you in once you get me out of here," Toph yelled.

Without any hesitation, Katara looked over at a nearby sink and began to bend the water out from the spout; warping the liquid into a thin shape, she commanded the water to slice into the metal braces, freeing Toph from its capture. Rubbing her wrists upon being released, Toph stood up from the uncomfortable embrace of the thin bed and rose to her feet.

"Do you see my clothes?" she asked them.

"Yeah, there over here," Katara said as she grabbed the folded clothes from an unoccupied bed and handed them to Toph.

"We have to hurry and get out of here," Sokka commanded, "our cover was blown; we had to split up from Aang, and now I'm pretty sure we're being followed by Azula's goons. Come on!"

Acting fast, the water tribe boy grabbed a hold of the blind girl's hand and led her out of the room and down the hall, followed closely by Katara. The three of them came to a small hatch on the ground at the end of the hallway; Sokka grunted as he forced it open as starred down into it. A river of slushy liquid flowed through a large pipe that led further down into the drill.

"Gross, what is that?" Katara questioned as she stared at the chunky pieces of rock that decorated the substance.

"Slurry," Sokka quickly answered, "it's pretty much water and rock mixed together, and it's our way out.

"Hey, you guy might want to hurry this up because I hear some people headed our way," Toph said as she pointed down the corridor.

Katara and Sokka followed her finger only to see Mai and Ty Lee headed directly for them.

"Ok, time to go," Sokka yelled as he pulled Toph and Katara with him into the hole.

Falling into the liquid and immediately being pushed along by the current, the three teens had to hold their breaths as they followed the flow of the slushy substance.

Mai and Ty Lee came to the hole moments later and peered down into it, seeing the movement of the water and rock in the pipe.

"Nope, no way. This is where I'm stopping," Mai said in disgust as she stared down into the drain.

"Come on, Mai, Azula gave us a job to do. We can't give up now," Ty Lee said, obviously very motivated.

"Have fun, there's no way I'm going to jump in that sludge juice," Mai maintained.

Ty Lee gave her comrade a thoughtful glance and a shrug before she jumped into the hole in pursuit of the three escapees; Mai just gave the girl a disgusted grimace as she closed the metal door.

Sokka, Katara, and Toph all held onto one another as the brown liquid continued to push them through the darkness of the pipeline; the odd flow of the sludge caused the three of them to spontaneously hit up against the sides of the hard surface inside of the pipe. Finally, the tunnel lead out into the brightness of the outside environment, momentarily blinding the three (or more precisely two) as they fell from the opening reserved for waste disposal. Following the motion of the slurry, all three of them let out short grunts as they landed on the hard, dirt-covered ground.

"Ewwwww, gross," Sokka noted, standing up and attempting to wipe off the thick liquid from his clothes.

"What do you mean 'ewwwww'?" Katara spat with a hint of anger, "this was YOUR idea."

Sokka gave his sister an irritated look before he glanced back up at the opening still releasing the slurry; his eyes widened as he saw Ty Lee emerge from within the bowls of the drill.

"Katara, Toph, block her off," he commanded with a pointed finger.

The two female benders thrusted their arms in front of themselves, combining their bending abilities to clog the projectile of water and rock from the machine. Ty Lee's movement was suddenly halted as a result of the two benders working to stop the flow of the slurry.

"Guys, keep that up," Sokka exclaimed, "the pressure on the inside of the drill is going to build, then when Aang delivers the final blow it'll be ready to burst!"

"Where's Aang?" Toph asked.

"He went to the top of the drill," Katara informed, "he's going to try to attack the outside of the machine."

Toph swallowed a little bit to tame her dry throat, "I hope he doesn't run into that guy."

"Which guy?" Sokka asked.

"The boy with the white hair," she murmured.

**End of Chapter 11**

Author's Note: _I feel like this chapter wasn't as well-structured as the last one, although I was able to further the plot along a little more. I really want Accelerator to demonstrate more of his abilities, but there aren't a lot of characters in the avatar universe who can pose any genuine threat for him. I'll try to make him a more prominent character in the story, but until then – please leave a comment if you liked or disliked this. I don't know, begging for comments at this point is just getting boring._


	12. Chapter 12: Aftermath

**Chapter 12: Aftermath**

Accelerator's face read of boredom and uninterest, but internally he was quite intrigued by the fight happening in front of him; his hands still absentmindedly remained in his pockets, and his eyes were intently watching the two benders engage in battle.

Azula had forced Aang on the defensive, her continuous attacks refused to give the airbender any time to retaliate. Sending two blue spheres of fire in his direction, Azula made sure to keep the boy off of his balance as she continued to close in on him. Getting within range, the princess warrior twisted her hips and rotated her leg up from the ground, narrowly missing the avatar with a powerful kick. The bald teen backed away from her, but soon became aware that his retreat was blocked by the high walls of Ba Sing Se. Taking advantage of the boy's narrow escape route, Azula put her two hands together as she aimed directly for the target's heart; launching a beam of her trademark blue fire, the Fire Nation princess watched as the attack neared Aang. Upon seeing the oncoming flames, his eyes widened before he quickly rolled out of the way; the fire exploded against the yellow bricks that composed the wall and blue embers disappeared into the air. Azula resumed her onslaught but was quickly stopped by the sudden impact of a large boulder on the metal shell of the drill, forming a dent as the massive rock bounced and rolled off of the machine. Irritated, the Fire princess glanced up to the top of the wall – a line of earth bender warriors stood in a row of about 10 individuals that starred down at the drill.

"General Cheng, please tell your soldiers to stop shooting rocks down here," Aang yelled up to the wall.

A feint voice echoed from atop the massive brick structure, "soldiers, whatever you do, don't stop shooting rocks down there." It said.

The soldiers continued their assault, picking up large boulders and launching them down at the drill; Azula clicked her tongue in annoyance as she tried to dodge more of the approaching rocks.

Accelerator let out a small chuckle as he watched the female fire bender struggle to avoid the circular stones; although he found the situation quite humorous, the esper knew that he had to take out the earth benders – they were too much of a nuisance. Creating a wind vortex that surrounded his body, Accelerator was slowly lifted off of the ground as he gently ascended into the sky. Floating toward the top of the wall, he scanned the row of earth benders and the terrified look of the person who was most likely the general. Lightly landing on the stone surface, Accelerator allowed a small grin to spread across his face as the earth benders took defensive stances at his sudden appearance.

"Halt! Identify yourself," commanded one of the soldiers.

"Me? I'm your worst nightmare," he smiled.

Before any of the soldiers could react, the esper stomped on the floor and several bricks from the ground were knocked foreword; hitting some of the soldiers, the solid projectiles tore through the bodies of the uniformed earth benders, breaking through flesh and bone. Several of the soldiers fell to the ground in pain, while others simply became limp – killed instantly. The ones who were harmed gripped at their wounds while the others began their own attacks; a large reserve of boulders were set next to the soldiers, and some of them took advantage of the arsenal. Using earth bending, the soldiers picked up the boulders and launched them as the still esper. Accelerator pulled his hand out of his pocket and quickly balled it into a fist; without much thought, he punched the nearest boulder, pressing his knuckles firmly against the rock's surface. The object shattered into hundreds of sharp pieces that cascaded outwards and pierced the remaining members of the earth bending group. Some of the other boulders simply missed him and harmlessly landed and rolled past him.

"Nice aim," he snickered to himself.

"R-reinforcements! Reinforcements-" General Sung began to yell before his mouth was forcefully covered by a hand.

"Shut it," Accelerator said as he pressed his palm forcefully against the general's lips, "If you yell out again, I'm going to kill you. Understand?"

General Sung nervously gulped before he nodded in acceptance to the esper's words.

Removing his hand from the man's mouth, Accelerator walked over to the edge of the wall and glanced down at the battle between Aang and Azula that continued to rage on. It looked like Azula was gaining the upper hand though, quickly tearing through the avatar's defenses and overwhelming him with her attacks.

Taking advantage of a vital opening, the warrior princess was able to kick Aang in the ribs and send his body flying back into the wall; upon slamming against the surface of the brick wall, Aang let out a grunt of pain as his body slowly slumped down to the floor. Quickly picking himself off of the ground, he glanced at one of the boulders that had been sent down from the top of the wall; his eyes widened at a sudden idea that worked its way into his head. As Azula approached him once more, Aang mustered as much bending force he could muster in an instant and sent a giant gust of wind toward the cautious princess. Unable to avoid the attack, Azula let out a labored grunt as her body was suddenly blown backwards into the air before she fell back onto the hard metal plating of the drill. Realizing he didn't have much time to act on his plan, Aang hurriedly bended the boulder towards himself and used airbending to slice the edges off of it until it came to a point. After placing the point of the rock into the drill's hull, Aang glanced back at a recovering Azula who was now getting back to her feet.

"Here goes nothing," he said to himself with a sigh.

Jumping up along the surface of the giant wall, Aang used his speed to run vertically up towards the top of the massive structure. Spinning the air around him into a rotating ball, Aang propelled himself further up the wall. Believing that he was finally high enough, he reached the height of his run and began to turn back around; pushing off from the wall itself, Aang sprinted back down the surface, speeding up the more he went.

"What is he doing?" Accelerator asked himself, confused by the avatar's actions.

As the bald air bender continued to speed up, Accelerator's eyes slowly widened in understanding.

Aang's feet suddenly left the surface of the wall as he leapt from it, launching himself down closer to the boulder that was positioned against the hull of the drill. Azula had fully recovered and was now rushing to stop the avatar from delivering his final attack; it was now a race against time as the princess launched her own attack of blue fire to intercept the falling avatar's path.

"She's too late," Accelerator whispered to himself.

The esper was right. Azula's attack barely missed the avatar as he firmly landed on the boulder, sending a thunderous shockwave to emanate from the point of impact. Letting out a strained shriek, the Fire Nation princess flew into the air due to the strength of the blast. Immediately after Aang had delivered the final blow, thick slurry shot up from the thin slits between the metallic plates. The liquid roared into the sky from within the moving drill, coating the surface of the machine as it fell back down; the heated, hazy steam from the walls of the drill slowly seeped out as the mechanisms on the inside began to shut down. The forward motion of the machine slowed to a stop as the rotating bit of the drill lost its movement; the center of the wall was slightly pushed in due to the drill's approach, and several of the bricks that were once a part of the giant structure had now been knocked loose from their positions.

Accelerator stared down at the aftermath of Aang's attack; the drill was no longer moving and was now coated in the yellowish color of the slurry. Grabbing ahold of General Sung's military uniform, Accelerator gave the man a stern glare.

"Don't scream," the esper commanded before he jumped off of the ledge of the wall with the General in-hand.

Sung let out a horrified shriek as their two bodies quickly began to descend towards the ground, gravity speeding up their movement the more they fell. Several seconds before impact, Accelerator utilized the air particles around them to slow the speed of the fall, allowing them to gently land onto the solid ground. Dropping the sniveling man to the dirt-covered floor, Accelerator glanced around in search of the defeated Azula. Conveniently, he happened to spot three figures who emerged from the back of the drill; they had been fully covered in slurry, so their features were slightly hidden by the mask of the thick liquid, but even then, Accelerator could tell who they were. Ty Lee, who for some reason was still smiling, seemed to be talking to herself, although that may be due to her words being ignored by the other two teens. Mai was the only one of the three girls who didn't look like she had been completely submerged in the liquid, yet she still glanced at Ty Lee with disgust. Azula walked in front of both of them, her face maintained an expression of silent rage as slurry ran down the side of her face and over her clothes. Accelerator's manner remained the same as the three of them noticed his presence and began to head in his direction; Azula, still obviously quite irate, stomped straight towards the esper in a fashion that would've probably been intimidating to most people.

"You! Where did you go!" She questioned, although it sounded more like a demand.

Accelerator opened his mouth to answer, but he was almost immediately interrupted by the Fire Nation princess who continued shouting.

"Nevermind! It is irrelevant, the avatar is gone!" She said, stopping mere inches from the esper's face with a scowl, "and YOU let him get away!"

Accelerator was unaffected by her aggressiveness, and his eyes slowly scanned her face.

Ty Lee walked up behind Azula and looked down at the man whimpering at the esper's feet.

"Who's that?" she asked, pointing at the General.

"Not sure," Accelerator replied, tearing his gaze away from the princesses', "but my guess is that he's a general. He was commanding the soldiers up on the wall to attack me."

"Wait a minute, you were on the wall?" Azula asked, staring up at the esper with mild surprise.

"Yeah, there were a few groups of soldiers that were stationed there, but I took care of them," he stated.

Azula brought her thumb up to her mouth and bit on the nail in thought as she glared down at General Sung who let out a whimper.

"You got a look at how thick the wall was, correct?" she asked, to which the esper silently nodded.

"Do you think you could break through the wall?" Azula said, hoping that she wasn't overestimating the skills of the esper.

"Break through it? Heh, I could completely destroy it if I wanted to," he said with a chuckle.

The Fire Nation princess said nothing in response and instead looked up at the massive wall in deep thought - her head then shot to the broken drill that was now motionless.

"The goal of this initial expedition was to infiltrate the wall while we had the element of surprise, however, now, the city has been alerted to us - we can no longer continue with our primary plan, we must formulate a new one."

The princess explained as she glanced at each of the faces of the teens who stood in front of her.

"What if we take a small group and use them to infiltrate the wall while the city is distracted by the presence of the wall; it will give us time to get in," Accelerator said.

"That can possibly work," Azula returned, "however, we would need to know which area of the wall has less surveillance so that we won't get caught. We don't even have a map of the city."

"No, but…" Accelerator said as he gestured down to the uniformed man on the ground, "we have someone who has actually lived in the city and who may have accurate knowledge of the area."

"You bring up a good point," Azula said, her anger now subsiding, "so then it is decided:"

"We shall infiltrate Ba Sing Se."

**End of chapter 12**

Author's Note: _Hey, guys, here's a new chapter for you. Aang may have 'gotten away', but I still intend on him and the group running into Accelerator sometime in the future. I don't know where exactly this story will go, but I do know one thing for certain….I know you guys should comment and let me know what you thought of this chapter. :)_


	13. Chapter 13: The New Plan

**Chapter 13: The New Plan**

Accelerator leaned against the surface of the brick wall with his arms crossed in front of him; Mai and Ty Lee stood next to him as they all silently waited. Azula had returned to the drill to give instructions to the remaining members of the crew – the initial plan had failed, so they had to work fast before earth nation reinforcements could show up. Since the new plan only involved a small group of people, Azula ordered the rest of the troops to temporarily retreat.

Accelerator watched as hundreds of Fire Nation troops flooded from the inside of the drills and quickly made their escape; some of them had taken transportation vehicles for a faster retreat. Azula made her way back to the other teens who watched on in curiosity.

"Why are they all running away?" Ty Lee questioned with an innocent face.

"It's a temporary retreat," Azula quickly informed, not giving much thought to who asked, "I told them to move back exactly 5 miles away from here. The Earth Nation may take possession of the drill, but they wouldn't dare follow the fire nation soldiers that far away from the city. Once we complete what we need to, I shall provide them with a signal to return."

"What's the signal?" Mai asked in her groggy tone.

"I'm going to have to send one of you out there to inform War Minister Qin of our status," Azula stated, "nevertheless, we shall cross that bridge when we get to it."

Finally walking up to the group, the fire princesses' golden eyes stared down at General Sung who had been nervously silent the entire time; he swallowed in fear as he stared back up into her burning irises, the intensity of her glare was almost unparalleled.

"Now, back to you," she said as she leaned down towards the general, "you understand what's going on don't you?"

Her question was more a threat than it was a genuine inquiry; her facial features were stern and unmoving as she got closer to the man.

"Here's what's going to happen," she began, "you are going to take us to the most unguarded area of the wall, and then you are going to show us exactly where the Earth King is located. Do you understand?"

Sweat began to form on the general's brow as he nodded to Azula's command, "Y-yes, of course, whatever you want. Just please don't kill me."

His plea came out in whimpers and the bottom of his jaw was quivering in silent fear.

"I won't kill you," Azula said with a smile, "not if you do what you're told."

With that, she stood back up to her feet, still looking down at the cowering general.

"Stand up," she commanded.

Letting out a labored wheeze, the man pushed himself off of the ground and to his feet; his eyes were still locked onto the princesses' steely gaze as he was fully able to stand.

"Start walking!" she yelled in a low voice, causing the general to slightly flinch before he started moving alongside the large wall.

Following the direction of the massive brick structure, the four of them maintained their pace as they walked on the outside of the wall, all the while looking up at it and taking in its size.

**Meanwhile with Aang and friends…**

Sokka was busy wiping off the rest of the slurry from his clothes, letting out mumbled curses as he worked. Aang and Katara walked behind him, chuckling to themselves at the water tribe boy's antics. Toph took up the rear of the group, following behind all three of them – she had also put her normal clothes back on, and ditched the wardrobe from the medic bay. Momo was busy flying around above the rest of them, trying to catch a beetle that was attempting to escape.

The group had left the battle area immediately, almost as soon as Aang had stopped the drill which resulted in an explosion of slurry. Now they were headed back up to the wall, but they wanted to create enough distance between themselves and the fire nation before they attempted to return. Coming to a nice, secluded spot, Aang and Toph combined their bending abilities to pull a large slab of the earth up from the ground, at least large enough for the entire group to stand on. After waiting for everyone to get on it, the two benders began to slowly propel the piece of rock up along the side of the wall; the group ascended the structure until they finally reached the top, careful to disembark from the slab and walk onto the surface of the wall.

"Hey, where's General Sung?" Aang noted upon entering onto the wall.

Looking around, the group was surprised that they didn't see the general - in fact, they didn't see anyone. The soldiers who used to guard the edge of the wall were nowhere to be found; it's like they all vanished.

"Hello?" Aang called out, hoping to receive some kind of response.

"O–over here!" a voice suddenly shouted out.

The gang quickly followed the source of the voice and came to see an area that was practically covered in bodies; the lifeless figures of soldiers were scattered about the brick-laden floor. Aang's fears were heightened upon seeing pools of blood flow in between the cracks of the ground and engulf the surface of some areas of the floor. There were survivors, however, which Aang was glad to see, but even they seemed to have garnered some horrifying wounds. The survivors stood off on the side as they tended to their own injuries, but a few of them couldn't help but stare hypnotically at the dead bodies in front of them. One of the men stood up once he saw the avatar and his companions near the area.

"The avatar," the man quietly exclaimed as he watched the group come closer.

"What happened here?" Aang asked immediately; the absolute carnage that he was witnessing was enough to make him sick.

"We were attacked," the man answered, lowering his head in utter defeat.

"By who?" Katara followed up.

The man did not look back up and instead continued to stare down at the ground, "by the 'boy with the white hair'."

Toph's eyes widened and her entire body stiffended upon the utterance of those words; Aang's mouth suddenly closed up in realization. He hadn't actually engaged the white-haired boy in real combat, but even with the brief time he saw the boy, Aang could tell he was powerful.

"When did this happen?" Sokka interjected.

"It happened during the battle between the avatar and the Fire Nation Princess. Our orders from General Sung had been to continue out onslaught with boulders. We were beginning to gain the upper hand when, out of nowhere, we saw something land on the wall from the sky. It appeared to be a white-haired boy. We told him to identify himself and stand down, but he refused. Before any of us could react, he took out a third of our forces in less than a second; the general told us to attack, so we followed his orders. We attacked him with all our might, but he was effortlessly able to negate all of our attacks and then eliminate the remainder of the troops. The entire fight wasn't even a minute long – we didn't stand a chance."

As he was talking, the man let his arm wander up and grip at his shoulder; thin strips were wrapped around it to stop the bleeding, but even then, the color red seemed to stain his skin.

"…I'm sorry," Aang said with a saddened look.

The man glanced up at him and gave the boy a solemn nod of half-hearted appreciation.

"Don't worry, we have a plan to stop the fire nation once and for all," Sokka said confidently, "that's why we're here – we need to see the Earth King. The information we have with us is of crucial importance. Could you please take us to see the Earth King?"

The soldier turned his body and pointed out into the expanse of Ba Sing Se; the city was composed of a variety of buildings that stretched throughout the area.

"The Earth King's palace is in that direction. You should be able to take a train to the city. The King does not see visitors often, but if you present your reason for arriving at Ba Sing Se, he may hear you out.

Great! Can you take us to him?" Sokka asked.

"I'm afraid not," the man sternly replied, "I must remain here to tend to by fellow soldiers;, reinforcements accompanied with medics shall arrive here soon, so it is my duty to stay."

"We understand," Katara replied, "I'm sure we can find our own way to the Earth King."

"Thank you," the man said with a slight bow, "There's a flight of stairs if you walk further down, they should take you to a platform where you can catch a train into the city. I wish you the best of luck."

With that, the man turned back around and walked to regroup with his fellow soldiers.

Aang looked at his friends; they all seemed to share the same amount of sorrow for the soldiers. If the Earth King agreed to their plan, then the mens' deaths would not be in vain. Slowly turning and heading away from the group of soldiers, remorse weighing them down, they followed the path of bricks further along the wall.

"We'll make this right," Aang whispered quietly, "I'll make this right."

**Meanwhile…**

Ty Lee let out an annoyed sigh, letting her arms drop down to her sides.

"Are we there yet?" she asked with a bored expression, "sand is starting to get into my shoes, and i'm pretty sure I might have a sun burn."

"Just suck it up and be quiet. We're almost there," Azula shouted before she glanced at General Sung, "isn't that right, general?" she asked.

"Y-yes!" he spurted out, "we should arrive there in a matter of minutes."

"Good," Azula said with a hint of glee in her eyes.

"Azula, what are we going to do once we get into the city?" Mai asked bluntly, "we can't just walk around Ba Sing Se in these uniforms, it'll give us away."

"I've already thought of that," the Fire Nation princess promptly responded, "obviously we will have to change our attire. Stealing the clothes of unsuspecting citizens should do the job; the earth kingdom wouldn't suspect any of its people to be traitors, so we can probably move throughout the city without issue."

"Ohhh, I see," Ty Lee said aloud in wonder, "that's a great plan, Azula!"

"Hmph, I know. That's why I came up with it," the fire princess responded with a smirk.

The group continued to follow behind the general, careful to not let him out of their sight - but to be honest, where could he go? Besides the wall, there was nothing but open desert lands for miles. Finally coming to a stop, General Sung looked up and down the bricks that composed the wall.

"It's... here," he weakly said, pointing his finger at a small area of the wall.

Azula took a look at the wall and then shifted her attention over to the silent esper.

"Can you break through?" she asked.

"Heh, do you doubt me?" he responded, causing the princess to cross her arms in front of her as she gave him a smirk.

"We shall see," she stated.

Chuckling to himself slightly, Accelerator placed his eyes back onto the target, staring quietly at the collection of yellow bricks that were tightly stacked on top of one another.

"You might want to step back," he said, making it obvious he was talking to everyone.

Giving the esper enough space to proceed with his attack, all four of the people backed away as they kept their eyes on him.

Satisfied with their distance, Accelerator took a deep breath and reeled his fist back; gripping his fingers together to form a fist, the esper launched a powerful punch into the brick wall causing it to explode in a cloud of sand and dust. The thunderous roar was immediately followed by a shock wave that was felt by the teens behind him; some pieces of brick became scattered all across the ground while others simply caved into the wall. After the smoke cleared, the four members all watched as it revealed a relaxed Accelerator staring at a large hole that had been carved into the wall. Azula was surprised, the thickness of the wall was much more than she initially thought; instead it being a couple of feet like she imagined, the thickness was about 15 feet, at least. The circular hole that Accelerator made seemed to tear effortlessly through the solid rock that composed the interior of the wall; edges of the inside of the newly made cave had been forcefully pushed out of the way.

Accelerator was the first to take a step inside of the hole before he glanced back at the group, "hey, are you guys coming, or what?"

Shaking themselves out of their momentary amazement, all four of them followed him into the hole, all the while staring at the opening at the other side.

**End of Chapter 13**

Author's Note: _Hey, guys, how has your day been? Cool, I don't care. This chapter was really a doozy to write because I was wondering if I should only focus on Accelerator and his group or if I was also going to write about Aang. I'll probably alternate between the two stories, but each of them are hopefully going to further the plot. Anyway, if you liked this chapter, please comment - if you didn't like it, slap yourself in the face and then comment. Thank you!_


	14. Chapter 14: The Outer Wall

**Chapter 14: The Outer Wall**

The group of the five individuals wandered single-file through the hole, feeling the momentary absence of the sun's rays as they walked into the shadows. Accelerator, leading the front of the group, stepped out from the darkness of the cave and entered the inside of the wall; looking around, he realized that he stood on a cobble-stone road that seemed to curve and follow the interior surface of the wall. On either side of the road were green patches of grass with thin blades that gently flowed in the wind. Further away from the wall stood tall trees that were irregularly distributed along the ground. Accelerator was a little bit surprised; there were no buildings around whatsoever, instead, there was a massive expanse of open green land that seemed to span for miles.

"It's clear," the esper stated, gesturing for the rest of the group to follow his lead.

Azula quickly came out from within the cave, closely followed by a nervous General Sung who was being forced from behind by Mai and Ty Lee.

Taking a look around, the Fire Nation princess seemed to be just as surprised at the lack of buildings as Accelerator was. Turning around, she grabbed the general by his neck-collar and pulled him closer to her in anger.

"Where is the Earth King?" she demanded, "there is nothing here but open land. You were supposed to take us to the city of Ba Sing Se."

"I-I did!" protested the terrified general, "This was just the outer wall. The Earth King's palace is located within the inner walls."

"There are different walls?" Accelerator questioned.

"Y-yes," the man confirmed as Azula removed her grip on his collar, "Ba Sing Se is divided into two main sections: the inner wall and the outer wall. The outer wall merely contains land that is used for farming, while the inner wall contains the actual city. In order to get to the inner wall, you have to move through the farmland or take a train."

"A train? Well, that's definitely out of the question," Mai stated with a sigh.

"How long would it take to get there on foot without using a train?" Accelerator asked.

"Perhaps just a few hours," the general informed.

Ty Lee let out a loud groan in protest, "I don't wanna walk for hours!" she whined.

"Are there any alternatives?" Accelerator said.

"Well, like I said before, the trains can take you into the city in about 30 minutes," the general stated.

"I see," the esper returned.

"Hmmm. Perhaps there is a way we can possibly take the train," Azula said in thought.

"Ok, what is it?" Accelerator questioned, looking over at the Fire princess.

Azula pointed over at a lone, small cottage that was positioned about 50 yards away from them or so; around the cottage were rows of vegetables that had been neatly organized for future harvest. A thin string that was tied to the side of the house and stretched over to a vertical pole, held several articles of clothing that hung out in the open. The clothes were drying, Accelerator noted, taking in how neatly they had been placed on the string.

"You want us to steal someone's clothes?" the unimpressed esper whispered to a wickedly smiling Azula.

"Why not?" she returned as she started to walk over to the small cottage, "besides, we need it more than they do."

Looking over at Mai and Ty Lee, who both shrugged at him, the white-haired esper lowered his head and let out a long sigh. Following Azula, the rest of the group walked over to the cottage and inspected the clothes; much of the material was coarse and rough, indicative of someone who probably couldn't afford finer wear. Most, if not all, of them were each varying degrees of green; some were a dark, emerald green, while others were a light, lime green.

"It seems there are enough clothes for all of us," Azula noted, first taking her own share of the garments.

The rest of the members followed suit, grabbing at the clothing and outfits that best met their individual needs.

"Wait, where are we supposed to change?" Accelerator questioned.

"Right here, of course," Azula answered as she removed her shoulder pads, "where else are we supposed to change? We don't exactly have the privilege of privacy out here in the open."

The esper said nothing in response, but he knew that she was correct; there was nothing at all around them except for the cottage they were at, and they weren't about to go inside. Mai and Ty Lee followed Azula's lead, proceeding to remove their own articles of clothing. So, giving in to the situation, Accelerator grabbed at the bottom of his shirt and hastily removed it.

"Ummm, i'll just be over here," the general said awkwardly as he stumbled his way behind the corner of the cottage.

"You better make sure he doesn't get away," Azula warned Accelerator.

"We're surrounded by several square miles of open land," the esper stated, "what's he gonna do - run?"

"You'd be surprised by what weaklings will do out of fear," she quipped.

Accelerator opened his mouth to respond but immediately went silent upon seeing Azula's half-naked figure; she wore underwear beneath the baggy clothes that tightly gripped at her body. Her legs were toned and somewhat muscular, leading down to her graceful calves; her waist was quite slender to and even evidence of abs shone beneath her pale skin. Accelerator was used to witnessing her in loose clothes, so seeing her in this state was somewhat shocking.

"What are you doing?" Azula said, breaking Accelerator from his silent stare.

"What?" he asked, hoping she hadn't noticed his momentary gaze.

"Why are you just standing there?" she asked, "hurry up and get dressed."

"Yeah, yeah," he answered dismissively as he continued to change.

It didn't seem like she noticed. That made sense though; after all, Accelerator was quite good at hiding his own thoughts and emotions, so his stare could've simply been interpreted as 'being deep in thought'. He could feel the cheeks on his face heat up, but he was convinced it was just due to the brightness of the sun.

Several minutes later, after everyone had fully gotten dressed, Accelerator walked around the corner of the cottage to see a surprised General Sung looking up at him.

"Come on," he said down to the man, "we're leaving."

After standing up, the man followed Accelerator back to the group.

"Now, where is the train station located?" Azula asked.

The man pointed in the distance to a thin bridge-like structure that hovered over the green landscape; a small object moved on top of it.

"Those, over there, are the train tracks," Sung stated, "It's the only accepted way 'in' or 'out' of Ba Sing Se. The station is located at the beginning of the track."

"I see. Then we shall make our way to the station," Azula said as the made her way there, followed closely by the rest of the group.

**Meanwhile…**

Aang and the rest of the gang quietly sat on several benches that had been laid out in rows; they had recently reached the station after taking a slight detour due to Sokka's unwillingness to ask for directions. The four of them had been waiting for about 20 minutes or so, although the trains were scheduled to arrive every half-an-hour. The train station itself was basically a large, stone platform that overlooked the expanse of the fields of the inner wall; two different tracks were positioned on either side of the platform to allow for people to exit or embark the trains, and they spanned over the grounds of the lush, green fields beneath.

All four of the teens waited while they preoccupied themselves with their own forms of entertainment; Aang giggled to himself as he watched Momo play with a lonely bug on the floor. Toph was busy bending a small pebble up into the air and then back down in sequence; Sokka was interested in the contents of a few scrolls he had in his bag, taking in the information that graced the paper. Katara rested her head in her hands, obviously bored out of her mind.

"Ugh, how much longer?" Toph groaned, catching the pebble in her hand once more.

"I'm sure the train will be here soon," Sokka replied without taking his eyes off of the scrolls.

Toph let out an irritated moan as she slunk back into the bench.

On other areas of the platform, various people were waiting for the train to arrive as well; some of them sat in benches while others leaned against columns. There weren't a whole lot of people on the platform, but over the last few minutes, some additional people began to show up to the station.

Upon glancing up, Katara spotted something approaching the station in the distance.

"Hey, I think the train's coming," she stated as she stood up, now free of boredom.

"Finally!" Toph exclaimed, dropping the pebble to the ground.

As the moving vehicle began to near the platform, the group prepared for its arrival; Sokka rolled up the scrolls he was reading and stuffed them in his bag, although he knew he would probably continue reading them on the train.

The vehicle slowed its speed as it neared the vicinity of the platform, eventually coming to a complete stop. The side doors of the train slid open, allowing everyone on the platform to walk into it; the train was basically a cart that had been placed directly onto the tracks. It didn't exactly have an engine, instead, two uniformed earth benders stood behind it, clinging to the back.

"Please board the train calmly and peacefully," one of the men yelled, "we will be disembarking very shortly. Thank you."

"Welp, time to go, Momo," Aang said as he picked up the lemur from the ground and placed it on his shoulders.

The four of them headed for the train, following the workers' orders as they calmly entered the vehicle.

**Back with Accelerator and Azula…**

The group had finally made it to the base of the train station, although they still had to climb the flight of stairs that actually led up to it. Walking in a single-file line, the five members made their way up the stairs, griping a steel bar alongside to help them up.

"What exactly is your plan," Accelerator suddenly said, causing Azula to look back.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Our goal is to get to the Earth King. But then what?" he continued as he stared up at her.

Turning her attention back to the stairs, the Fire princess answered, "We have been given a rare chance that no one in the Fire Nation has ever been given before. We were able to infiltrate the 'impenetrable' wall of Ba Sing Se – we need to take advantage of that."

"Ok, how are we supposed to do that?" the esper shot back, "are you thinking of killing the Earth King?"

"Perhaps," Azula said, "…perhaps not. Simply killing the Earth King would lead to a violent outbreak, and we would probably be caught in the crossfire; furthermore, I do not seek the Earth King's death – I seek his political power."

"Tch! Man, I really hate politics," Accelerator responded as he scratched the back of his head.

Azula let out a giggle at the boy's statement.

"Indeed," she resumed, "politics can become quite messy and complicated, but they are necessary to –"

Her words suddenly stopped along with her body as she remained still; the five of them had nearly gotten to the top of the platform, but Azula stood, frozen on the steps as she stared at something ahead of her.

"What is it?" Accelerator asked upon seeing her face.

"Interesting," Azula said as a smile began to grace her face, "it seems luck is beginning to turn in our favor."

Walking up the stairs further, Accelerator's eyes widened.

There, entering the train in front of them was the avatar.

**End of Chapter 14**

Author's Note_: Howdy doody, my dudes. I hope you all are doing well. This chapter was a pretty chill one; there weren't a lot of intense scenes in this, but I tried to add a few moments between Azula and Accelerator to add more to their relationship. I'm going to do more with the two of them soon, but this is what I have for now. Anyway, if you guys liked this chap- you know what, I'm not even gonna finish that sentence, cuz you already know what to do._

P.S – please comment.


	15. Chapter 15: The Inner Wall

**Chapter 15: The Inner Wall**

Accelerator, Azula, and the rest of the group stared on in silence; Aang hadn't seen them and instead seemed to be preoccupied with something else. The doors on the train slowly began to slide close, cutting off the avatar from sight; moments later, the train itself started to leave the platform, moving on the straight path of the track. Azula's eyes followed the vehicle as it continued to move away, refusing to look at anything else.

"It seems the avatar is attempting to meet with the Earth King as well," she simply stated.

"How can you be so sure, Azula?" Ty Lee questioned, following immediately behind Accelerator.

"It's no coincidence that the avatar has come to Ba Sing Se," Azula explained, "the only reason he and his friends would enter the city is to talk with the Earth King."

"Well, what are we supposed to do now?" Mai interjected, "if the avatar recognizes us in the city, our cover is blown."

"Don't worry, we're not going to let him see us," Azula responded.

As they were talking, another train approached the station, slowing to a stop as it neared the platform; just like the last one, the uniformed men on the back of the vehicle announced the train's arrival and told everybody to board it. The five of them, along with a few of the other citizen's who had been waiting for the train, made their way onto the vehicle. The area on the inside of the train was quite small and everyone on board had to stay tightly packed within the space; Azula and Accelerator were both pushed to the corner of the cart by the oncoming people. One of the citizens must've accidentally bumped into Accelerator as he was pushed closer to Azula; stretching his arms out and planting them against the wall on either side of the surprised princess, he suddenly leaned in mere inches away from her face.

"S…sorry," the esper whispered apologetically, turning his head to avoid her gaze.

"Don't worry, it's only temporary," Azula said in a dismissive tone, "once we get to Ba Sing Se, things will be much smoother."

Accelerator nodded his head as he stared out the window at the lush, green fields below them while the train moved; taking a glance out of the corner of his eye, the young esper couldn't help but examine the soft features of the princess' face. As she stared out of the window, the bright light from the mid-day sun illuminated her pale skin and made her golden eyes appear to sparkle. Accelerator hadn't thought of this before, but she was actually quite pretty – at least when compared to most girls he saw.

The train ride took as long as General Sung had said – about 30 minutes or so, and they spent the majority of the time staring out at the ground below. As they neared the inner wall, the train began to slow down as it flew swiftly through an opening above the tracks. The opening to the other end of the inner wall revealed the vast outstretch of the city; buildings took up every inch of space, it seemed, and the busy movement of citizens took up the open walk ways. The train station was within view now, and the train started to decelerate. Slowing to a gentle stop, the vehicle halted on the tracks at its final destination; platforms were positioned on either side of the train to allow for the occupants of the vehicle to exit in different directions.

The group of five walked off of the train and onto the stone floor of the station; the platform led to an open area that connected to two staircases opposite each other. The stairs led down to the city street and morphed with the crowd of moving citizens. Azula wandered to the edge of the platform and overlooked the expanse of the Ba Sing Se city line; the avatar had left mere minutes before them, so he couldn't have gotten far.

"Can you see the avatar?" Ty Lee asked, wandering behind Azula.

"No," the Fire Nation princess blankly replied, "but we're not here for him. We're here for the Earth King."

Turning her attention to the General, who was no longer terrified of the situation but still seemed to be quite nervous, Azula faced him.

"Lead the way," she demanded with a menacing glare.

General Sung gulped as he nodded his head and led the teens down the stairs; all five of them took careful and deliberate steps down the steady descent of the stone staircase. Upon meeting the street's level, all of them weaved through the massive crowds that packed between the buildings.

"Don't you think that being out in the open like this is risky?" Accelerator asked as he closely watched the back of the general to make sure he wouldn't try to escape.

"I agree," Azula whispered back, "but right now, we don't have any other options."

The group soon turned down a relatively thin and secluded alleyway; Accelerator's suspicion began to rise the more they continued further down the passage. The sounds of the crowds began to die down as they wandered deeper and deeper into the alleyway.

Upon coming to a corner, the group was suddenly confronted by a trio of figures that silently emerged from the shadows. They wore dark robes with long sleeves that covered their hands; round, pointed caps adorned the top of their heads and narrowly hid their eyes from view.

"At what time does the dragon sleep?" one of the men asked.

Looks of confusion flashed on the teens' faces as General Sung stepped foreword.

"At the same time the lotus wilts," he responded.

The man remained silent for a few moments before he stepped to the side to allow them all to pass by. General Sung led the way, being the first to walk past the three men; just as he passed by, the general glanced back at the group – a strange look appeared on his face. Accelerator's eyes suddenly widened upon realization.

"It's a trap!" he suddenly yelled just as one of the men went to attack Azula.

Digging his feet into the earth, Accelerator left a small crater in his wake as slammed the man into a wall. The other two men appeared to be startled by Accelerator's speed, so Azula wasted no time taking advantage of their hesitation. Reaching out and grabbing the nearest man's wrist, Azula twisted his arm and forced him to down to his knees; once he was on the ground, she forced her leg up into his face, effectively breaking his nose and causing blood to sputter from his nostrils. As the second man fell to the floor, unconscious, the third man prepared his own set of attacks in Azula's direction. He was quickly subdued by several quick jabs to the abdomen and the shoulders by Ty Lee; the man let out a groan before he collapsed to the floor.

"Phew! I thought that was gonna be hard," Ty Lee said happily.

"Where did the General go?" Azula demanded.

"He probably escaped," Accelerator stated as he tightly gripped the neck of the first man.

"You…won't…make it..out of here…alive," the man gasped as he gripped at Accelerator's arm.

"Hmmm, this looks familiar," Azula mused as Accelerator gave her an annoyed look.

"It seems our guide was able to get away," Azula said to the man as he continued to struggle, "I suppose YOU will have to take his place."

"I'll never tell you anything!" the man sneered as he spat in Accelerator's face.

The enraged esper silently wiped the saliva off of his face with the back of his hand; his fire-red eyes burned as his lids narrowed with rage at the man.

"You're gonna regret that," Accelerator said in a rough voice.

The man's jaw merely stiffened in opposition to the esper's threats.

Placing his palm on the man's stomach, Accelerator slowly began to apply pressure into his abdomen; the man let out a groan in pain as the esper's hand continued to press deeper into his body. Still refusing to give up any information, the man remained silent, but the pain he was feeling began to take its toll. The sound of breaking ribs echoed throughout the walls of the allyway, followed by the agonizing scream of the man.

"Hey, aren't you making too much noise?" Mai wondered, nervously looking behind her.

"Sounds are nothing more than vibrations," Accelerator informed, "I can limit the amount of vibrations that escape within any given area."

"In other words," he said as he gave the man an evil smile, "make all the noise you want. No one can hear you scream."

At this point, blood began to pour from the man's mouth, "you're bluffing," he coughed.

"Try me," Accelerator immediately shot back.

Pushing his arm in further, the esper watched as blood fell from the man's open mouth onto the dry floor. Leaning in closer, Accelerator began to speak once more.

"Who are you?" he asked.

The man hesitated at first, but he eventually gritted his teeth out of both pain and defeat.

"We…we are the Dai Li," he mustered to say.

"The 'Dai Li'?" Azula interrupted, "What is that?"

"We are a secret organization who work for the Earth King. Our task is to limit the spread of information that may lead to political or civil unrest by subduing any individuals who threaten our task," he said through strained grunts.

"How did you know General Sung was being threatened by us?" Azula curiously asked.

The man turned his head to look at the princess, "each official operating within the government is given a series of secret answers to certain prompts. One question is 'At what time does the dragon sleep?', to which the individual will either answer 'When he has a need for slumber' or 'At the same time the lotus wilts'. If the person answers in the latter, then he/she is secretly stating that they have been compromised."

"I see, quite ingenious," Azula answered.

"Do the Dai Li have access to the Earth King's palace?" Accelerator asked.

"…of course," the man stated.

"Good," the esper said before he pulled back his other hand and delivered a powerful punch to the man's face, knocking him out.

"What are you doing?" Azula questioned as she approached Accelerator, "There were more answers we could've gotten out of him."

"Maybe, but if you want to complete your mission, you have to catch the General," Accelerator informed, "otherwise, he'll reveal our plans and our cover will be blown."

"We don't even know where he went. He could be anywhere by now," Mai stated.

"The Earth King's palace – he'll be headed there," Accelerator stated confidently.

"How do you know?" Ty Lee asked inquisitively, tilting her head a bit to the side.

"He's an official of the Earth King's government; if he has any information pertaining to the well-being of the city, he has to go to the palace to relay that information to someone else."

"I agree," Azula sounded, "it makes the most sense. The Earth King's palace is the center of all political power in the city; therefore, it would probably be the place to receive most information."

Mai crossed her arms as she leaned lazily against a nearby wall, "Well, what are we supposed to do now? It's not like we can just waltz into the Earth King's palace –"

"Hey, guys, look at me," interrupted a playful Ty Lee.

She was casually wearing the clothes of one of the Dai Li agents who had been knocked out.

"Check it out, I'm an earthbender," she said as she mimicked the movements of an earthbending attack.

As the three of them watched her prance around in the dark robe, Azula's face suddenly lit up with an idea.

"Ty Lee, you're a genius!" she exclaimed.

"I am?" the clueless girl questioned, allowing the hat to drop to one side of her face.

"Yes. Well, no more of a genius than me," Azula stated with cocky grin.

"What is it? Do you have an idea?" Accelerator wondered, causing the Fire princess to look at him with the same grin.

"If the Dai Li have full access to the Earth King's palace, we can use their uniforms to sneak into the building; from there, we can find General Sung, and stop him before he tells the Earth King about us," she said.

"Hmmm. Ok. Good plan," Accelerator said giving her a nod of approval, "but there are only three guys here, so one of us has to go without a uniform – I volunteer myself."

"Are you sure?" Azula asked.

The esper nodded once more, "yeah, it's not really my style. You guys should hurry up and put the uniforms on. I'll meet you at the palace."

"You're not coming with us?" Ty Lee asked.

"Nah, there are some things I need to do first," he said as he began to walk back through the thin alley way.

"Oh? And what is so important that you'd risk blowing your cover?" Azula inquired with crossed arms.

"I'll let you know when we meet back up," he returned without looking back.

The esper continued down the hallway until he was at the end; making a swift turn around the corner, the figure of the white-haired boy vanished.

**End of Chapter 15**

Author's Note: _Hey guys, how's it goin'? So the last two chapters were mainly exploring the relationship between Accelerator and the rest of the characters; like I said, I'll still be keeping up with Aang and the gang, but this particular chapter was specifically geared towards Accelerator and his interaction with the avatar world. There are also a few scenes I added between Accelerator and Azula that may become more important later on in the story. Anyway, if you liked the chapter, don't comment – just kidding! (please comment, it's the only thing I value in this pitiful life.)_


	16. Chapter 16: A City on the Surface

**Chapter 16: A City on the Surface**

Aang sat quietly on smooth leather seats as the carriage he was in slowly moved through the street; next to him, on his left, Katara gracefully rested her hands in her lap while Toph (at the very left) had her arms crossed in front of her. On the opposite end of the carriage, facing them, sat a concerned Sokka who was practically screaming at the woman he sat next to – her name was 'Joo Dee'. She worked for the Earth King, just like most officials, and her job was to show the avatar around the city as well as assist him in any way she could. She wore a robe that was colored with varying degrees of yellow and green; atop her head sat a long block-like hair clip that had been positioned horizontally, relative to the ground. Her eyes were somewhat narrow and her nose was quite short and button-like; the main feature about her, however, was her smile. Instead of having what most people would consider to be a normal smile, Joo Dee sported an incredible and almost eerily large smile that practically stretched from ear-to-ear. Rows of pure white teeth were entirely visible underneath her peach-colored lips.

"Look, I'm not sure if you know this or not, but WE NEED TO SEE THE EARTH KING," Sokka exclaimed as he raised his arms above his head.

"I understand," Joo Dee happily replied, looking back at the teen, "don't worry. Most people take a while to see the Earth King, but given you're the avatar and all, I'm sure he is willing to see you much sooner - perhaps….in a month or so."

"A month?!" the rest of them repeated in horror.

"Yes," the woman confirmed, "quite fast, isn't it?"

Before any of the teens could raise their voices in protest, Joo Dee looked out the window of the carriage and gestured to something outside.

"It seems we're here," she stated as the carriage came to a stop in front of a large house.

"Where?" Aang asked as he glanced up at the structure.

"Your temporary home," she replied, stepping out of the wagon.

The rest of the gang followed her lead and made their way out of the carriage, planting their feet on the flat ground as they stared up at the structure in front of them.

The house was quite large, stretching at least 20 feet in either direction; its height reached about 25 feet and overlooked the group as they made their way up to the front door. A wide set of stone stairs led up to a porch that was positioned in front of the entrance; a circular arc surrounded the outside of the front door and reached up to the underside of the roof. Circular columns stretched from the base of the porch to the surface of the ceiling, and the group noticed that well-trimmed bushes were positioned on either side of the stairs.

Taking her time to unlock the front door, Joo Dee gently pushed it open to reveal the inside of the massive house; just like the stairs, the walls of the dwelling were made of stone that had been smoothed. Near the back of the house, in a separate room, a large carpet was set in the center of the space to allow for comfort. Toph was the first one to make her way to the back room and heavily sat down on the mat.

"Joo Dee, what do you mean this is our home?" Sokka asked as he scanned the interior of the room.

"Well, while your request to see the Earth King is being processed, you have been allowed to stay here in the meanwhile," the woman explained.

A look of disbelief adorned Sokka's face, but his worries were quickly dispelled when he glanced back and saw the rest of the group happily wander around the room. Letting out a long sigh, the water tribe boy gave up any hope of arguing with them.

"Please, take your time and settle in," Joo Dee said as she rigidly stood in front of the doorway, "I'll be here when you need me."

"We don't need to be babied," Toph bluntly responded from across the room.

"I think what my friend here is saying is that 'we'll be fine'. You don't have to stay here," Katara said, giving Toph a look of warning.

"I'm sure you will," Joo Dee said with the same huge smile, "however, I'm afraid I cannot leave you by yourself. After all, how can I 'assist' you if I'm not here?"

Toph let out a grunt and folded her arms in irritation.

"Fine, you can stay," Sokka intervened, "but we're probably gonna head out to search for our bison soon, right Aang?"

"Yeah, I'm sure someone in the city has seen Appa," the young airbender said.

After a few minutes of Joo Dee showing the group around the house, introducing them to the living room, kitchen, and even the bathrooms, all of them eventually decided to head out in search of information about Appa. Wandering outside to the front of the house, they all made their way down the stairs and back into the carriage; fitting themselves back into the leather seats, they settled in as the wagon started back up again and moved down the road.

For the next few hours, Aang and the rest of the gang spent their time meeting various people throughout the city; most people hadn't seen Appa and others didn't even know what a sky bison was. As they were talking to people, there were a few times when they seemed to look somewhat scared to answer questions – certain people even glanced nervously at Joo Dee before saying they didn't know anything. Eventually, the time came for them to return to the house, although the group was largely disappointed that they couldn't gather any valuable information on Appa. Coming up to the house like the first time, the group sluggishly emerged from the stationary carriage and stood in front of the massive structure.

"I'm sorry you couldn't find your bison. You can search tomorrow. Goodnight! I'll see you tomorrow," Joo Dee happily chirped from within the carriage as it began to move away from the house. It continued down the street until it made a quick turn and vanished around the corner.

Aang let out a sigh and slumped his shoulders, "I can't believe no one has seen Appa."

"I know, right? How do you miss a giant flying bison?" Sokka exclaimed.

The group walked up the same stone stairs as before and unlocked the front door; entering into the interior of the house, they silently decided to settle in for the night. Toph stomped over to the back room and sat down on the floor with a relaxed sigh.

"Jeez, my feet are killing me," the blind girl said as she massaged her heel.

"How long were we even out there?" Katara wondered.

"Probably a couple of hours," Sokka blindly informed as he shuffled through his bag once more.

Suddenly, there was a firm knock on the front door that caused everyone to become silent.

"Who could that be?" Aang asked as he slowly made his way to the door.

Grabbing the metal handle, the bald airbender slowly opened the wooden object. Seconds before he fully opened it, Toph suddenly screamed as him from across the room.

"WAIT! Don't –"

But before she could finish, Aang's eyes suddenly widened as he revealed who stood behind the door.

There, staring down on him with red eyes, was the 'boy with the white hair'.

**Accelerator's POV:**

The avatar's face was priceless; it was a mix between surprise and sheer terror. His lips curled into a small grin as he loomed over the airbender.

"Hey, how's it going?" he hissed, the maniacal smile still apparent on his lips.

"Y-y-y….you," Aang stuttered as he began to back away.

"Yes, 'ME'," Accelerator said, taking a step into the house.

"You should be careful. You're soooo easy to track," the esper whispered as he closed the door behind him.

Toph gritted her teeth as she slammed her palm down on the stone floor and sent a large brick at the white-haired teen; expecting an attack, Accelerator stuck out his arm and caught the object in his hand, fully stopping its motion.

"Nice try," he chuckled to himself as he dropped the stone brick.

"I'm not really here to fight," Accelerator said, scratching the back of his head, "but if you want to….I CAN GO ALL OUT!"

His eyes seemed to flash red with danger, causing everyone else to slightly back away in fear.

"but like I said, that's not why I'm here," he resumed in a calm tone.

"Why are you here then?" Katara asked.

Accelerator remained silent and instead glanced at Aang who stared back at him with uncertainty.

"You," he said, pointing at the avatar, "You're weak."

The young airbender was slightly taken aback; although he was expecting hostility, he was somewhat unprepared for direct verbal insults. He looked back at his friends; they also seemed to be just as confused as he was.

The pale esper continued, "Do you know why you were able to stop the drill? It wasn't because you were strong, it wasn't because you had any chance against the Fire Nation – it was because I 'let' you win."

His words came out slow and precise, almost as if each word held vital significance.

Aang gulped a little to wet his dry throat, "What do you mean?" he asked.

"When you first met me in the drill, did you think you had even the slightest chance of beating me?" Accelerator questioned as he began to walk towards the airbender.

Aang opened his mouth to reply, but his words were halted by Accelerator's rising voice.

"The answer is NO. You had absolutely no chance of beating me. That's why I let you leave, that's why I allowed you to fight Azula alone, and it's most certainly why I let you destroy the drill."

"W-why?" Aang asked, shocked.

"Because of one fact – it would be boring," he stated, confusing everyone even more.

"What's the point of fighting you if you're not at your best?" the esper inquired.

"What do you mean?" Katara decided to ask.

Briefly turning his attention to the water tribe girl before looking back at Aang, Accelerator answered, "As far as I understand it, the avatar is meant to master all four elements, but when I watched you fight I realized that you weren't even close."

"That's not true!" Katara protested, "Aang knows how to use all of the elements."

"Well then," Accelerator said, stuffing his hands into his pockets, "why haven't I seen you use fire bending yet?"

Aang remained silent as he stared back at the cocky esper.

"I…I can't," he said with a lowered head.

"…bullshit," Accelerator cursed, causing Aang to raise his head once more.

"I see that look in your eye," he said, leaning in closer to the avatar's face, "It's not that you can't do it, it's that you're afraid to."

Aang gritted his teeth in defiance, "Shut up! What do you know? So what if I'm afraid to fire bend? Besides, I'm confident I can win without it."

In one swift motion, Accelerator grabbed the collar of Aang's shirt and roughly pushed him against a wall. The others in the room were shocked but quickly planned on attacking the white-haired teen.

"You think you can win without it?" the esper angrily repeated, "What kind of crap is that? Do I look like a f***kin' joke to you? You're not even powerful enough to beat the Fire Lord; what chance do you have against me if you won't fire bend?"

"You beat the Fire Lord?" a shocked Sokka asked with a boomerang raised above his head.

"It was almost too easy," the esper quickly shot back.

"He's lying," Katara nervously declared.

Toph leaned down and placed her hand on the cold, stone ground.

"No, he's telling the truth. I can hear his heartbeat from here," she informed before standing back up.

"That's right," the esper snarled, "Now, if you want to have any hope of defeating the Fire Lord, I suggest you improve."

Accelerator then released his grasp of Aang's clothes and took a step back.

"If you're not gonna use all elements, then just give up," he said as he turned around and headed back to the door.

Before he could reach the door handle, Aang said something behind him.

"I can't give up," the avatar stated, "there are too many people who are counting on me."

Accelerator stopped in his tracks as he listened to Aang's words.

"If I don't defeat the Fire Lord, then millions of people could die. I can't let that happen," he continued with confidence in his words, "but…I know you're right. I'm being selfish. If using fire bending can save people, than I can't afford to be afraid of it."

A small smile spread across the esper's face, but this time it was not one of malice or one of aggression – this time, it was genuine. It might have been silly for Accelerator to think this, but Aang reminded him of someone he once knew. A will to protect others was something Accelerator had wanted, but it was something he also didn't have; whether it was because of his nature or how he viewed people, he had no one he truly wanted to protect – at least, not in this world.

Without turning around, the esper gave Aang his parting words.

"You're lucky, avatar. You are surrounded by friends who care about you and who are willing to help you in any way they can. You have a purpose that drives you foreward. I'm envious. Just know this, avatar – when we meet each other next, I will not hesitate to take you down."

A with that, the esper swiftly left the house, closing the door behind him as he left.

**End of Chapter 16**

Author's Note: _Hey, guys. So, although this chapter didn't have a lot of action in it, I mainly tried to build up Accelerator's character a bit more. Later on in the story, I want Accelerator to go through some personal changes (don't worry, though, he'll still be Accelerator, but just a little different). A few of the things that were said in this chapter, might also be connected to things later on in the story. So anyway, I have a riddle for you: what is T-N-E-M-M-O-C spelled backwards? If you got it right, you'll know what to do._


	17. Chapter 17: The Earth King's Palace

**Chapter 17: The Earth King's palace**

Three cloaked figures moved through the streets of Ba Sing Se, their faces hidden by wide hats that were angled downward; their hands were concealed beneath the loose and wide fabric of their sleeves. Walking quickly and with haste, the three figures moved alongside the base of the nearby buildings on the sidewalk. The three of them moved in a single-file line as they continued along the street; the first figure, leading the other two, glanced up at a large building that they were approaching. Lowering their head once again, the front figure leaned back and whispered to the other two.

"We're almost there," the figure whispered, "the palace is within my sight."

"Wow, Azula, how did you know where to find it?" the second figure asked.

"The Earth King's palace is a symbol of power; it's only natural for it to be placed close to the center of any city - it represents the 'heart' of the citizens," Azula replied, the circular hat still hiding her eyes.

"How much longer until we get there? This uniform is really itchy," the third one replied.

"Come on, Mai, it isn't that bad," the second figure chuckled.

"Speak for yourself," the third, or rather Mai, said.

"Ty Lee, Mai - Silence!" Azula growled, slightly turning her head back to the bickering girls, "You are going to blow our cover."

"Sorry," the two teens whispered in unity.

"Our mission is not like some vacation on Ember Island," she continued, "this is something that requires all of our skills and attention."

"Well, then, where's Accelerator?" Mai absentmindedly asked.

Azula remained silent for a moment as she continued to walk along the path; her golden eyes remained glued to the ground that slowly moved in front of her as she took deliberate steps. It was true, the white-haired esper wasn't present, but why? Why did he leave so suddenly, and where did he go? The thoughts that swirled around in the Fire princess' head were not ones of concern, they were thoughts of suspicion. He said he had something to do in Ba Sing Se before he left, but he had never been in the city before. The only thing that he could do in the city would have to be connected to the avatar - but what would he want with the avatar?

"Azula?" Mai asked, noticing that the Fire Nation princess didn't respond.

Azula bit at her red nails in deep thought as her ideas became more prominent.

Is he trying to help the avatar? After all, Accelerator hadn't fought the avatar in the drill - in fact, he didn't try to engage the avatar in battle.

"Azula?" repeated Mai, now confused by Azula's silence.

Perhaps he is attempting to betray her. Yes, that MUST be it….but why? He has no reason whatsoever to join the avatar. Is she thinking about this too much?

"Azula!" a voice erupted, suddenly jolting the princess from her thoughts.

Turning around, she glanced at the girls behind her and shot them an irritated look.

"What?" she demanded.

"We're here," Mai replied, pointing up at a massive building that stood in front of them.

"The Earth King's palace," Azula muttered to herself.

The three of them took in the majesty of the massive structure before them; two rows of long, green carpets jutted out from the base of the entrance and led into arched openings. The building itself was large and rectangular; on either end of the main structure were positioned two similar rectangular buildings that stood parallel to one another. The surface of the palace was colored red and the light of the sun seemed to bounce off of the paint. Elevated roofs extended from the top of the structure that overlooked the entirety of the ground below and glistened with the golden embroidery that decorated it. Almost each wall on the outside of the palace held green posters that displayed the symbol of the Earth Kingdom.

"Where's Accelerator? He said he was gonna meet us here," noted a confused Ty Lee.

"Maybe he's late?" Mai wondered.

Azula remained silent. Now the thoughts that she had before were starting to take root in her mind once again. Perhaps he really did betray her; maybe he decided to join the avatar.

"Hey," a voice suddenly sounded from behind the silent princess.

Azula whirled around, and was met with a set of red eyes that stared down at her; white hair gently rustled in the wind across the face of the figure that stood in front of her. A sudden (and unexplainable) sense of relief flooded through her entire body as she stared up at the esper.

"Took you guys long enough to get here," Accelerator said with a cocky grin.

"Where were you?" Mai asked, placing a hand on her hip.

"Indeed, where were you?" the Fire Nation princess repeated, a sense of warning in her voice.

Azula looked at the esper; she would like to know the answer to that. What did he do while the three of them were headed to the palace? Of course, he wouldn't tell them if he went to the avatar, but even a lie could reveal bits of the truth.

"Oh, I went to see the avatar," the esper said with a dead-panned face.

The three girls went silent upon hearing his admittance; however, Azula was surprised for a much different reason. He just told the truth. Why would he just tell them the truth? Wouldn't it make more sense to hide the fact that he went to see the avatar….unless he wasn't planning on joining the avatar in the first place.

"Did you fight him?" Ty Lee asked.

"Nope," Accelerator responded as he picked his ear.

"Then why did you go to see him?" Azula questioned with suspicion.

"It was more of a warning, I guess," the esper replied, shrugging his soldiers.

'A warning? What does that mean?' Azula silently wondered.

A loud 'gong' suddenly sounded from the top of the Earth King's palace; the vibrations of the sound spread through the air, earning the attention of the four teens bellow. The sound slowly died down as the seconds passed. Accelerator was the first one to speak, turning to the girls before he opened his mouth.

"We need to find General Sung," he said, looking at each of them.

"How are we supposed to do that?" Mai asked, "This place is huge."

"Found him," Ty Lee said as she pointed to the entrance.

Past the open entering area, the four teens silently watched as General Sung walked down a hallway within the palace. Surprised by their luck, the four of them gave each other an exchange of looks ranging from excited to confused.

"Come on," Azula whispered, making her way to the entrance.

Turning around, she noticed that Accelerator hadn't joined them.

"What are you doing?" she practically yelled.

The young esper gestured to his clothes, "I'm not wearing a uniform, remember?"

Azula didn't protest and instead nodded in understanding; he was right, given his appearance, it was much more likely that he would be discovered. With this in mind, the Fire princess adjusted the hat on her head and beckoned for Ty Lee and Mai to follow closely behind her. Swiftly moving into the halls of the large palace, the girls cloaked themselves in the black cloth of their robes as they pursued behind the unsuspecting general. The walls of the hallway were fairly well-decorated, with intricate golden designs that spread along the stretch of the long passage. Rows of closed doors were equally spaced from each other and were almost identical in terms of size and design. Continuing down the hall, Azula watched as the general made a sudden turn around a nearby corner; coming to a stop, she peered around the corner and saw Sung approaching two guards further down the hall.

"I need to see the Earth King," General Sung demanded.

"Regrettably, sir, I'm afraid that cannot happen," one of the guards stated.

"What? But I have information that's very important," he retorted.

"His Majesty is preparing for the upcoming Party tomorrow night; he must not be disturbed," the guard said with a glare, "you will be allowed to meet with him sometime after said event."

"B-b-but…I…"the general tried to reply.

"Leave, now!" the guard commanded.

Nervously lowering his head in defeat, the Earth General turned his back to the guards and wandered back to where he came from. As he was headed to the corner, Azula quickly turned to Ty Lee and whispered something in her ear; nodding in accordance with the Fire Nation princess' words, Ty Lee ran down the hallway back to the front entrance. Turning her attention to Mai, she then pointed to one of the doors further down the hall; Mai nodded as well and moved to stand beside it. The hallway became silent, except for the constant footsteps of General Sung as he neared the corner.

In the meantime, Ty Lee sprinted out of the palace and ran up to a bored-looking Accelerator who was leaning against a wall. Coming to a stop in front of the confused esper, the circus girl placed her hands on her knees as she tried to catch her breath.

"What the hell's wrong with you?" Accelerator asked through the sounds of the Ty Lee's heaving.

"Azula told me to get you," she said as she looked up at his blank face, "it's important."

The esper let out a short sigh and gently pushed himself from the wall, "alright…where is she?"

"This way," Ty Lee said running back into the palace, followed closely by the white-haired teen.

The two of them made it almost halfway down the hallway before witnessing Azula crouch down next to the corner; it seemed as though she was waiting for something. A little closer to them stood Mai who had her hand placed on the handle of a nearby door. There was a sudden rush of action as Azula practically jumped up when someone rounded the corner; quickly placing her hand over his mouth and forcing his arm behind his back, she was able to restrict his movements and pushed him down the hall. Nodding to Mai, Azula watched as the kunai-carrying assassin opened the door that lead into a dark room. Looking up, Azula noticed Ty Lee and Accelerator watching the events unfold; throwing her head to the side in a beckoning motion, she continued to force the man into the room. Accelerator realized that the person caught by Azula was General Sung, who looked particularly terrified at the moment as he feebly attempted to free himself from the Fire Nation princess' grasp. Shoving him directly into the room, Azula waited for Accelerator and Ty Lee to enter as well before closing the door swiftly behind them.

General Sung was pushed to the back of the room and stumbled against a wall. The room was dark, so he squinted his eyes in order to get a general feel of the four figures in front of him.

"Who-who are you? What are you doing?" he demanded in fear.

"My, my, my, have you forgotten us already?" replied a female voice from beyond the dark veil.

"What?" General Sung asked in confusion.

Suddenly, there was a spark of light that soon burst into a concentration of blue flames that danced around one of the figure's fingers. Sung gulped almost immediately out of horror; he now knew who they were, and he began to fear for his life.

The blue flames in front of him lit up the entirety of the room; the glow of the light illuminated the walls of the room that surrounded them. The room itself wasn't very large and was probably just a place that was used for storage sometimes. General Sung's attention, however, was on the four individuals who stood before him. Even with the overwhelming blue hue of the fire, Azula's golden eyes cut through the atmosphere and stared at him with a particular sense of intensity. Beyond her, stood the other two girls of the group, who seemed considerably less preoccupied with him than Azula was; their body language spoke of uninterest and indifference to his presence. Then, the final figure emerged next to the female fire bender and stared down at him. Like Azula, the color of Accelerator's eyes seemed to be unaffected by the blue flames; however, unlike her, his eyes seemed to glow by themselves as they glared down at him and pierced at his very soul.

Slightly shaking his head to rid him of his fear-induced hypnosis, the general finally opened his mouth to speak.

"What are you going to do with me?" he asked.

A wicked smile began to grow on Azula's face as she took a few steps closer to him. The general tried to retreat away from her, but his back immediately collided with the wall behind him. Holding his breath as the Fire Nation princess got closer to him, the general couldn't help but let a few drops of tears stream from his face.

"P-please…don't kill me," he pleaded as he got down on his knees, "I'll do anything…please, please, please."

His begs quickly turned into sobs as the words he spoke deteriorated into incoherent babbling; the small drops of tears transformed into heavy streams of uncontrollable fear as he grasped his hands together. He held his hands up to the approaching Fire princess in an almost prayer-like fashion as he gazed up at her face. Mercy was what his heart begged for. He was horrified to see that instead of any hint of remorse or pity, what the general saw was quite the opposite – Azula looked down at him with an even wider smile, her expression turned to that of glee. She was happy that he was suffering, happy that she had this much power over him, and happy that his pleading was not going to sway her from what she was going to do next.

Kneeling down and placing both hands on either side of his face, the Fire Nation princess looked him in the eyes.

"Accelerator," she said without looking away, "I need you to keep any sounds from escaping this room. Can you do that?"

"Sure," the esper curtly replied.

"Good," she said with a calm voice.

Staring into General Sung's eyes, Azula whispered one more thing to the sniveling man, "Try not to scream."

With that, an outpour of fire erupted from the palms of her hands and quickly surrounded the general's head. The sounds of the rapidly burning flesh were only surpassed by the horrific screams of the general as he gripped at Azula's arms in pain; struggling to remove her grip on his head was futile and within a few seconds his own arms became limp as they fell to his sides. The release of the general was not enough to Azula as she held his head in place, watching intently as the skin itself started fizzle and change color.

Mai and Ty Lee had averted their eyes since the first five seconds of this horrid event, but Accelerator stared on with an emotionless face at the scene before him. It was strange; it was almost like he was looking into a mirror – or rather a mirror of his past self. Sure, he still killed people, but it was usually in the quickest way possible; he wasn't really one for torture, but he supposed he could understand the appeal. Something inside of him felt strange. Watching the carnage unfold in front of him was almost like a reminder – a reminder of what he once was.

He could even guess what Azula was feeling right now: elation, euphoria, joy, power, control, superiority – it was all happening at the same time. The sudden flood of emotions was all too familiar to the esper.

The screams of the man had long since ended and now the only sounds to fill the air was that of the fire itself that continued to ripple around the dead man's head. Finally satisfied with her work, the princess released her grasp of the head and allowed the lifeless body to fall to the ground. The flames went out, causing the room to become filled with darkness once again – hiding the evidence of the body within the shadows.

"There, our work here is done," Azula said, turning around and heading back to the door.

Pushing it open, allowing light to spill into the room, Accelerator had a split-second look at the state of the corpse. Almost all of the man's features were entirely burned off, with only small indications of where the eyes and mouth used to be. The skin had become dry and brittle, loosing its tan complexion in favor of a charcoal-like color. After taking a short, yet remembering glance, the white-haired esper quietly exited the room along with Mai and Ty Lee

**End of Chapter 17**

Author's Note: _Wow…so…that got really intense. Although there weren't a whole lot of fighting s**C**enes, this was pr**O**bably the **M**ost violent and grueso**ME** chapter I've writte**N** **T**hus far. However, one of the reasons I decided to include this in the story is to highlight the extreme tendencies that Azula has and would probably engage in if the avatar show wasn't for kids. This, of course, also had another purpose. I wanted to create a way for Accelerator to realize certain similarities that he has with Azula; this thing that they share (being pretty power-crazy) is really going to be the driving factor for the initiation of their relationship. Also, read the bolded words in order to figure out what you need to do…then do it._


	18. Chapter 18: Hidden Emotions

**Chapter 18: Hidden Emotions**

It had been several minutes since the murder; or rather execution, of General Sung. Azula made sure to get rid of the evidence, taking her time to completely burn the General's remains until there was nothing left but ashes. She, along with the rest of the group, buried the ashes in the ground that surrounded the building. By that time, Accelerator and the others had no further reasons to remain in the palace, so they quickly vacated the premises. Switching clothes in a nearby alleyway, the teens decided to stay out of sight for a little while.

Azula remembered hearing about a party that the Earth King would be attending soon; of course, the event itself wasn't important, but it would give them the opportunity to get closer to the Earth King himself.

As Azula was explaining her plan, Accelerator absentmindedly glanced up at the sky; the clouds looked so free up there in the embrace of the large, blue canvas. The blue, however, was now starting to get overtaken by a mesh of orange hues. Night would arrive within a matter of hours. His thoughts were soon interrupted by the constant sound of a voice in his ear.

"…ello….hello…hey, are you listening to me?" Azula asked as she pointed a finger in his face.

"Loud and clear," he said with labored sigh.

"Good. Then you understand the plan, right?" she asked.

Scratching the back of his head, the esper somewhat sheepishly replied, "Uhhhh…do you think you could say it again."

Azula clicked her tongue in annoyance and rolled her eyes at Accelerator's wandering mind.

"I'm going to send Mai back out of the city to meet with our Fire Nation forces; she will inform them of our current status and about any relevant data about Ba Sing Se. If we don't succeed in our mission, the Fire Nation will at least know enough about the city's defenses and layout to plan a separate attack. Meanwhile, you, me, and Ty Lee will operate undercover as members of the Dai Li to get closer to the Earth King. When the time is right – we kill him."

"It's not going to be that easy," Accelerator noted, "The Earth King is an incredibly important figure, it would only be natural for him to be surrounded by guards."

Azula smiled, "Not if there's a distraction," she said.

"Let me guess: it's gonna be me," the esper stated.

Azula let out a genuine chuckle, "I've seen you in action. There's nothing for you to worry about; you'll be fine."

"Ty Lee, you and me will stay in the background. Once Accelerator makes his move, we have to act fast. Got it?" she asked.

The wide-eyed girl nodded, "Got it!" she affirmed.

"Good," Azula said, now turning her attention to Mai, "you know what your task is, correct?"

Mai nodded as well, "I leave back through the hole we came in from. I'll head in the direction that our troops retreated to: approximately 5 miles to the north. When I arrive, I'll inform War Minister Qin of our status and provide him with whatever information he needs so he can relay it back to the Fire Lord in case you guys don't make it back."

"Excellent," Azula said, "Remember, Mai, it's best to move under the cover of night, so you shall leave once the sun disappears beyond the horizon."

"Understood," Mai returned.

Azula let out a deep breath as she peered up at the sky; none of them really had a place to stay for the night, and simply stealing someone's house was way too risky for them at this point. The best they could do was find a secluded spot and hope that it doesn't get too cold at night.

"Ummm, could I leave for a little bit?" Ty Lee asked, her hand on her stomach, "I really need to use the bathroom."

"Very well – go," Azula said, "but make sure that you return within half-an-hour. I can't have you wandering off."

Ty Lee hastily nodded before walking around the corner of the alleyway; Accelerator watched her leave and couldn't help but feel like something seemed strange about her behavior. Granted, he hadn't known her for that long, but even he could tell she was acting differently than her normal, chipper self.

Sliding his hands into his pockets, the esper also began to wander off, "I gotta take a shit too," he said with a hand wave as he disappeared behind the corner.

Accelerator walked behind the unaware girl, maintaining a steady distance away from her; noticing that she quickly jumped behind yet another corner, Accelerator's eyebrow raised in confusion and curiosity. Picking up the pace a little, the esper finally rounded the corner that Ty Lee had jumped behind. There, crouching on the floor, was Ty Lee; for some reason, she had fallen to her hands and knees, dry heaving as she stared down at the dirt floor. Her intense breathing was soon followed by the sound of something liquid splattering on the ground – she was vomiting.

Accelerator didn't understand. Why was she throwing up? Was she sick or something? What's going on?

The coughing sounds that accompanied her vomiting soon turned into light sobs as she slowly began to cry. Accelerator didn't exactly feel sorry for her, but he couldn't say that he didn't care either – he was just confused. Why was she crying?

Pushing any questions that he had to the back of his mind, Accelerator carefully approached the sobbing girl.

"Are you ok?" he asked as he looked down at her.

Seemingly startled by his presence, Ty Lee practically jumped before she glanced back up at him. His piercing, red eyes that normally read of anger or indifference were now replaced by a look of confusion and worry.

"Oh…hey, I didn't see you there," Ty Lee said through sniffles as she wiped her eyes with the back of her hand.

"Why are you crying?" he asked.

"O-oh, it's…uhhh…it's nothing," she lied.

Accelerator realized that she refused to meet his eyes with her own; her cheeks had begun to redden due to her crying and streams of tears ran down her face as she stared at the ground beneath her.

A bit uncomfortable with the silence, Ty Lee continued to speak.

"It's just….I…didn't expect to see Azula do that," she whimpered.

Accelerator's eyes suddenly widened in realization; Ty Lee's behavior started to change almost immediately after Azula killed General Sung. He understood now - she had never seen death; or more specifically….murder.

"I…I can't get that man's face out of my head," she sobbed, "did you see his face?"

Accelerator slightly nodded; it was hard to simply forget such a gruesome sight. The eyes that had disappeared; the skin that had melted; the face that had charred; the man that had died. Of course, he had seen things like that before, so he could deal with it. But for someone like Ty Lee, who had probably never witnessed the death of another, it was quite scarring.

"She killed him, and I just stood by and watched…" she whimpered as she clutched her two hands together in front of her.

Accelerator couldn't help but feel a slight twinge in the center of his chest; a sudden sense of remorse flowed through his entire body. The white-haired esper hesitated but eventually lifted his hand up in front of him; he gently caressed the cheek of the poor girl in front of him, causing her to look up at him.

"It'll…be ok," he reassured her. He had never encountered a situation like this, so he didn't really know what to do.

"*sniff* why am I like this?" Ty Lee asked, her large eyes looking into Accelerator's.

"Because you're normal," he calmly informed, "because you're human."

The girl remained quiet and seemed to take in the meaning of the esper's words; the soothing reality of what he said appeared to calm her as her shaking body became more still. Closing her eyes, Ty Lee used both of her hands to dry the remaining tears from her face. He was right; she had nothing to be ashamed of. She knew that his words didn't clear her mind completely, but she could feel herself begin to calm down. After a few seconds of silence, a small smile began to form on her lips.

"Thank you," she said as she gave him her usual, gleeful smile.

A small grin appeared on the esper's face as well, "Sure."

"Anyway, I'm gonna head back now," Accelerator said as he slowly turned around, "You should probably clean up a little before you return."

Ty Lee looked down at her dirty clothes and felt the residual tears on her face.

"Oh, right!" she exclaimed, "Thanks!"

"Whatever," he mumbled as he left around the corner and headed back to rest of the group.

Reappearing in front of Azula and Mai once more, the Fire Nation princess looked up, surprised.

"That was fast," she noted, to which Accelerator just shrugged his shoulders.

Taking a seat down against a wall, the esper closed his eyes and leaned his head against his arms that were situated behind him. Several minutes later, Ty Lee returned with no indication whatsoever that she had been weeping in sorrow.

"Took you long enough," Azula stated with a side-eye.

"Y-yeah, I reeeallllyy had to go," Ty Lee responded, stressing some of her words.

Not wanting to dig any further than that, Azula turned her attention to the plan at hand.

"If we want to work efficiently tomorrow, we should all go to sleep. One person will stay awake and let everyone else know if something comes up; I will take the first watch," the Fire princess said as she stood up.

The others nodded in agreement before they began to settle in for the night. Ty Lee used the Dai Li uniform she wore as a type of blanket and covered herself with it to warm herself; Mai followed Ty Lee's method and proceeded to utilize her own uniform as well. Accelerator remained quietly in the corner with his eyes closed, almost as if he had already fallen asleep.

It didn't take long for the sky to finally darken, allowing the stars to shine through the atmosphere; it had gotten quite cold as well, something that Azula had hoped wouldn't happen. The city itself began to calm down as night arrived; the hustle and bustle of the citizens died down and now silence seemed to fill the air. It had been about 2 hours since the rest of the team fell asleep, and Azula remained awake and vigilant as she carefully examined her surroundings.

Hearing someone approaching her, she whirled around and crouched into an attack position as the footsteps continued; looking up at a blank-faced esper, Azula sighed and lowered her defenses.

"I thought you were still asleep," she said with a sigh.

"I was," Accelerator responded as he took a seat beside the black-haired beauty, "but I thought we were gonna take turns."

"I'll wake you up when I need you," she said dismissively.

Accelerator's eye slightly twitched in irritation, "wow, how thoughtful of you," he growled.

The two of them sat in silence for a few moments before the white-haired esper spoke again.

"Wouldn't it be better to do this from a higher vantage point?" he questioned.

"What do you mean?" Azula said as she turned to him.

"Well, if you station yourself at some place that's above ground, you'll be able to overlook more area," he observed, pointing to the top of a building immediately next to them.

"That would be much more efficient," Azula conceded, "but it might be too high for me to climb."

Accelerator remained silent for a second.

"I can take you up there if you want," he suggested, avoiding the look she gave him.

"Would you carry me up there or something?" Azula joked, "No offense, but even though you are indeed quite powerful, you don't look like you're physically very strong."

Accelerator's eyes narrowed, "Oh yeah?" he said as he stood up, "Is that a challenge?"

"Well, I-" before Azula could respond to the angered esper, she felt his arms suddenly pick her up off of the ground; holding her weight beneath her legs and under her back, Accelerator lifted her off the ground, bridal-style.

She then felt her body being lifted into the air as Accelerator leapt up to the top of the building. Gently landing on the roof, he looked down at the surprised princess. Her eyes peered up at his as though there was something else beneath them, and he could've sworn that he saw a slight blush appear on her cheeks.

"Ok, you might've been right," he suddenly said through a strained voice, "you're pretty heavy."

Quickly setting her down, Accelerator then cleared his throat to cover up his hidden embarrassment.

"You're…..much stronger than I thought," Azula carefully admitted.

Staring at the esper for a bit longer than she should've, the slightly flustered Fire princess set her attention up to the star-lit sky, taking in the large expanse of night. It was quite beautiful, although Azula would never admit it outright; after all, she still had a mission she had to accomplish, or else….

"Hey, you ok?" Accelerator asked, noting Azula's worried face.

"It's nothing," she responded, regaining her composure, "I'll be fine from here. You can just go back to sleep."

"Trust me," the esper said as he took a seat, "You're gonna need to rest soon. Also, I require WAY less sleep than you think."

Azula closed her eyes in thought; perhaps he was right, refusing to get some rest was a bad idea – especially considering how important the events of the next day would be.

Glancing back at Accelerator, who had made himself comfortable on the roof, Azula let out a sigh of defeat.

"Fine," she quietly conceded, "I suppose it would be beneficial to get some rest. But I want you to wake me sometime within the next few hours."

Giving the Fire princess a gentle nod, Accelerator agreed as he watched her lay down on her back and look up at the stars. The next few minutes were filled with silence as the two of them quietly sat still; eventually, Accelerator looked over at Azula and was surprised to find the black-haired beauty fast asleep. A small smile appeared on his face as he returned his attention up to the night sky.

**End of Chapter 18**

Author's Note: _Well, it looks like someone is making some friends. Obviously, this doesn't mean that Accelerator is BFFs with Azula or Ty Lee, but it does kind of strengthen his bond with them a little. I'm going to have to think about how this will affect the rest of the story, but I was fairly happy with how this chapter turned out; also, let me know if you've noticed Accelerator's gradual personality change throughout the last few chapters in the 'COMMENT' section. Thanks_!


	19. Chapter 19: Confessions

**Chapter 19: Confessions**

Azula awoke to the warm feeling of fabric laying on top of her; still groggy, she lifted her head up and was surprised to find one of the Dai Li uniforms had been placed over her. Gently removing the garments, Azula let out a shallow yawn as she rubbed her eyes to rid them of their haziness.

"Hey, you're up," said a voice close to her, "I was just about to wake you. It's been an hour and a half since you first went to sleep."

Almost automatically, Azula realized the identity of the person who was speaking; she was still quite sluggish from waking up mere moments ago, but the determined Fire princess pushed herself off of the ground as she stood up. She was still on top of the building that she fell asleep on, so thankfully nothing had changed.

"Anything to report?" she inquired with a groggy voice.

"No. It's been quiet this entire time," Accelerator responded, "in other words – I'm bored."

Glancing down from atop the roof at the two other teens below, Azula continued to speak.

"Mai is going to have to leave soon," she said, leaning over the edge, "we need to make sure that the reinforcements are aware of our situation."

The esper was quite impressed with Azula's ability to think ahead and keep her mind focused on one particular thing at a time. Because Accelerator never had to work with other people before, he often found formulating plans to be quite troublesome, especially when it relied on other people. However, over the past couple of days, he found himself becoming more and more interested with thinking of ways to organize future actions.

"What are we going to do if the plan fails?" he asked.

"It won't. It can't," she replied, her face remaining still in thought.

Letting out a quick sigh, as if pushing away any of the concerns in her mind, the young fire bending princess turned to Accelerator.

"What do you think of my father?" she suddenly asked.

"What?" the esper responded, completely unprepared for such a random question.

"My father," she repeated, "what do you think about him? Honestly?"

Accelerator considered the question for a moment.

"He's cool, I guess. Pretty powerful (at least as far as benders go), and he's probably really protective of his nation," the boy said.

"He's a little bit of an Asshole, though," Accelerator concluded.

"What do you mean?" Azula asked in a somewhat defensive tone.

"Well, even though he's the leader of an entire nation, he seems like he believes he's superior to everyone else – It kind of pisses me off. It's as though he believes the power of the Fire Nation is solely due to him; any leader with that kind of personality will pointlessly punish anyone as long as he remains in power, even though it can harm the nation in the end."

Azula's hands twitched at Accelerator's words. Yes, all of those things were probably true, but she never viewed them as anything particularly negative; on the contrary, she believed that doing anything to gain power was admirable. Anyone who was unwilling to compromise their 'morals' for power just seemed like weak people in her eyes. Those who are strong do what they must….right?

Staring intently at the esper as he simply continued to look up at the sky, Azula opened her mouth to speak but was slightly hesitant.

"I see," she said, wondering if she should say what was next on her mind, "Then…what do you think of me?"

Accelerator shifted his entire body around to face the princess; her eyes glanced down in an attempt to avoid his.

"What do I think about you?" he repeated.

"Yes," she said.

"Honestly?"

"Yes."

"Then, 'Honestly', I think you're a lot like me," the esper began, "You desire power as much as I do. But, unlike me, you're definitely better at controlling yourself. You do well in most situations, making the best decisions to lead to any result you want; I know I can't do that. You're smart to; you sometimes plan so far ahead of your opponents that it's actually sort of amazing."

"You're also…..never mind," he said, seemingly regretting the statement as he looked away from the Fire princess.

"I'm also what?" Azula asked, now curious about the esper's unfinished words.

Hiding his face from the princess, Accelerator spoke in an almost hushed tone.

"You're also beautiful," he said.

Azula was taken aback; of course, being the Fire Lord's daughter and all, she was used to compliments, but most of them were from people who had a hidden agenda – none of them were genuine. But now, in front of her, sat someone who obviously didn't care about political gain; here sat a boy who truthfully and meaningfully called her 'beautiful'. Azula felt her face begin to heat up a bit, especially around her cheeks.

"Th-thank you," she said.

"Yeah…sure," he replied.

"I…uhhhh…I should probably go wake Mai up," Azula suggested, diverting her attention from her own nervousness.

"Sure, go ahead," Accelerator said with a wave of his hand.

Leaping from the roof of the building and somersaulting all the way down to the ground, Azula made sure not to make too much noise. Consciously trying to return to her face to its normal state, Azula worked to rid her cheeks of its redness as she approached the sleeping assassin.

"Hey, wake up," she said in her stern voice as she began to shake Mai awake.

The kunai-wielding girl opened her eyes upon the sudden pressure she felt on her body.

"What? What is it?" she asked.

"It's almost time," Azula said coldly.

Letting out a long sigh, Mai sat up as she gingerly rubbed her eyes to rid herself of the haziness she was experiencing. The first thing she mentally noted was the quietness of the night; nobody appeared to be awake at this time – this, of course, was good for her because it meant she could escape the walls of Ba Sing Se without too much trouble.

Glancing around, she noticed that a particular white-haired esper was nowhere to be seen.

"Where's Accelerator?" she asked.

Azula's body slightly stiffened at the name but she remained as straight-faced as she could.

"He's up on the roof; he believes it gives him a better vantage point to see if anyone is approaching," she coldly replied.

"Alright," Mai accepted, not willing to question any further.

Catching a glimpse of Azula's face by accident, she saw a small amount of redness on her cheeks.

"Are you sick or something?" she asked, gesturing to the Fire Nation princess' face.

"…Yes, I suppose I am," Azula said, instantly trying to come up with an excuse, "Don't worry. It should be fine by morning."

Mai looked at Azula with a blank expression as she studied her face.

"Ok, whatever you say," the bored assassin finally replied.

For the next few minutes, Azula told Mai the details of what exactly she would tell War Minister Qin once she exited the city. Some of it got a bit complicated, but for the most part, her mission was fairly simple. Finally, the time came for Mai to leave for her mission; quietly saying her goodbyes, the young assassin wandered off into the city. The outline of her body lasted for several blocks before it disappeared into the darkness of the shadows beyond the buildings. Azula's eyes continued to linger on the shapeless shadows that enveloped Mai long after the assassin had left; it had been so long since she last felt so uncertain about a mission. Truth be told, she didn't know where her worry stemmed from; was it the unfamiliar environment? The particular nature of the situation? Or was it something different?

Whatever, it didn't help her any to hold onto these foreign thoughts; after all, she was Azula, daughter of Fire Lord Ozai – there was no reason she had to be worried.

"Did Mai already leave?" a voice suddenly sounded from behind the princess.

Ty Lee had apparently woken up; it was evident given the drowsiness that she displayed on her face.

"Yes, she is gone," Azula responded.

"Oh….where's Accelerator?" the wide-eyed girl wondered, looking around for the esper.

"He's taking his turn for look-out up on the roof. You may have to switch with him soon," Azula said, leaning against a wall.

"Ok, should I go tell him then?" Ty Lee asked with a strange amount of eagerness in her eyes.

"Sure. Do what you want. It makes no difference to me," the Fire Nation princess grumbled.

"Ok!" Ty Lee said.

A small smile spread across the circus girl's face as she finally stood up from where she had awoken. Using her acrobatic skills to jump up the side of the building and climb her way to the top, Ty Lee reached the roof with relative ease. Upon walking towards the quiet esper, who's back was facing her, she couldn't help but feel a bit anxious when approaching him. She felt her heart beat a bit faster than normal, but she tried to contain herself as she walked up to him.

"Uhhhh, Accelerator? I think it's my turn to take watch," she said, doing her best not to sound pushy.

He turned to look up at her, his glowing red eyes met with her brown, innocent ones. Red – what a beautiful color.

"Huh? Did you say something?" he asked.

Quickly shaking herself from his hypnotic stare, Ty Lee continued to speak.

"Ummm…Azula…she told me to…t-take watch…now," the girl said, desperately trying to suppress her own nervousness.

"Sure, that's fine," the esper said, "I mean, I've already gotten enough sleep, so I'll probably just stay up."

"Oh, well, in that case, you can stay on watch with me," Ty Lee said

"Ok, that works, I guess," Accelerator shrugged.

"Great!" the girl said, or rather shouted in a high-pitched manner.

"Keep your voice down," the esper quietly warned, placing a finger on his mouth.

"Sorry," Ty Lee replied sheepishly.

Taking a seat next to the already seated esper, she dangled her legs over the ledge of the roof.

"How long have you been awake?" she asked.

"I don't know. A few hours maybe," he guessed.

"Geez, don't you ever sleep?" she wondered, glancing over at him.

"I require considerably less sleep than most people. I can function for days without needing to rest. I may be a by-product of my abilities," he informed calmly.

Ty Lee stared at his profile; although he wasn't what she would consider to be 'her-type', she would be lying if she said she didn't think he was attractive. His white hair was calming, almost surprisingly so, and his eyes were intense enough to make anyone stop in their tracks. She never thought too much about this, but even his personality was somewhat interesting as well. When she first met him, she thought he was one of those 'cold, unemotional' types, which he kind of was to a certain extent, but yesterday she saw a completely different side of him. When he saw her in distress, he decided to give her some words of encouragement. It was at that moment that she began to look at him in a different way.

"Hey, do you mind if I ask you something?" the young girl said.

"Uh, sure…." Accelerator responded in a strictly 'unsure' tone.

"Why did you help me yesterday? I mean, you could've just ignored me. Then you wouldn't have had to deal with my stupid emotions," she rambled as she lowered her head.

Accelerator looked up at her completely random question. This felt a little like Déjà vu. What was it with people asking him random question today?

The esper straightened his back as he tried to think of an answer.

"I don't know. I don't really know why I did it," he finally confessed, "I guess you were just acting so weird that it made sense to say something. I mean, if nobody said anything to you, it would probably be really bad for you."

Ty Lee nodded her head as he spoke. His words probably didn't mean too much to himself, but to her…they were like gospel. It was a relief to her that someone, even if it was just one person, cared about her well-being.

"Thank you," she said.

.A saddening expression slowly made its way onto her face as she pulled her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them.

"Do you think I'll ever be able to forget his face. The face of the guy who was killed?" she wondered.

"No." Accelerator said.

Ty Lee pinched her lips together in an effort to avoid crying once more; that wasn't what she wanted to hear.

"You may never forget about him," Accelerator continued, "but you shouldn't want to forget. You should want to remember and grow; this memory is a part of you now, and the only way you can move forward is for you to acknowledge this experience. Believe me, I know…"

Ty Lee's features began to soften. He did it again; somehow he managed to make her feel better again. With a somber chuckle, the young teen wiped at her watering eyes and allowed a small smile to crawl its way back on her face once again. She was fine now. The sorrow had passed; possibly for good this time, but she didn't care too much at the moment. Right now, she felt thankful that he was here with her. A hero by her side.

**End of Chapter 19**

Author's Note: _Hey guys, I just wanted to know, did the character development seem too rushed to you? This chapter was particularly hard for me because I realized it was very difficult to introduce helpful plot devices that led to certain character relationships. I don't know, let me know what you guys thought._

_Hey, here's a quick quiz:_

_Where should you leave your comments?_

_a) Comment Section (this is the correct answer)_

_b) your bed_

_c) a trash can_

_d) your ass_


	20. Chapter 20: Party Preparations

**Chapter 20: Party Preparations**

The morning came as fast as the night fled, leading into a new day for the citizens of Ba Sing Se. The sun had not fully risen yet, but the oncoming orange hue of the sky gave promise to its arrival. Few people had woken up, so the city had not yet been subjected to the sounds of daily life. Those who woke up early either tended to their morning duties or took quick strolls around the town.

Accelerator still remained up on the roof, almost like a statue with his unmoving poise; beside him, or rather, elsewhere on the roof, was a quietly sleeping Ty Lee who had gradually fallen victim to sleep during the night. She slept silently atop the roof as Accelerator took the job of 'lookout' for the rest of the night. Hearing a sudden sound from the other side of the roof, the esper turned his head to see Azula headed his way. The two of them hadn't talked since the conversation that transpired the night before, which probably gave both teens time to think.

"Morning," Accelerator greeted.

Azula simply nodded back at the esper in acknowledgement; she now wore the same expression that he was used to – unimpressed, cold…dull. Her eyes glanced over at him, but it was almost as though they didn't register his presence; they simply looked through him. Lowering her head, eventually noticing Ty Lee on the floor, Azula gave a slightly irritated look. Gently nudging the sleeping girl with her foot, Azula watched as Ty Lee grumbled at the attempt to wake her. Opening her eyes, Ty Lee saw the image of Azula looking down on her with hands on her hips.

"Have any good dreams?" the Fire princess asked with narrowed eyes.

"Heeey Azula!" Ty Lee sang with a sheepish grin.

Sitting up, the brunette tried to think of something to say, "uhhhh…nice day, isn't it?"

"You're supposed to be lookout. Why are you sleeping?" Azula noted, ignoring Ty Lee's attempt at brevity.

"Well, I was gonna do that, but Accelerator said that he would be willing to take over for me," the girl responded, gingerly scratching the back of her head.

Azula looked over at Accelerator, "Is this true?" she asked.

"Yep," the esper answered straightforwardly.

"…I see," she said, after a short pause.

"Well then, be that as it may, you should've informed me of this decision beforehand," she said with a hint of anger.

"Sorry, Azula," Ty Lee apologized, lowering her head to the ground.

"I wasn't talking to you," the Fire Nation princess said through a lowered brow as she stared directly at the esper.

"Wait, me?" he asked, pointing to himself.

"Yes - You. I admit, you are quite powerful, but that means nothing to me if you cannot follow simple orders," she chastised.

A sudden and familiar twinge of rage momentarily shot through Accelerator's body as he glared back at the princess. The two of them locked eyes, neither one of them refused to look away.

"Do you understand?" she asked, although it didn't sound like a question.

Staring back at her, the esper said nothing for several seconds as a gentle wind blew over the roof.

"Yeah, whatever. I got it," he finally commented, turning his back on the princess as he returned to looking out over the city.

He was confused; why was she suddenly acting like this? Did it have anything to do with what he said the night before? Honestly, the way she was acting right now wasn't too offset from her normal personality, but it was weird to him that the change was so sudden. Well, whatever. Why were girls so weird?

**Meanwhile, with Aang…**

The group had gotten a goodnight sleep, despite the sudden appearance of that white-haired kid the day before. By now, all of the members had woken up; the first one up was Aang (usually due to his time in the air temple), followed by Katara, Sokka, and a very grumpy Toph. The slight light of the morning sun peaked through the window slits and served as the start of the day. Aang focused on some stretches to prepare his body for the day, while Katara wandered outside. Sokka immediately jumped back to the scrolls and continued to read the rest of them; Toph mainly sat up in her bed/mat and rubbed at her eyes until she no longer felt drowsy.

Sokka glanced up from his scrolls momentarily to see Toph's messy morning hair.

"Wow," he said, wide-eyed, "just wow."

"What?" Toph asked.

"It looks like your hair got attacked by a Platypus Bear," the water tribe boy noted, trying to hold back his laughter.

"You're lucky I can't see what you look like in the morning," Toph retorted as she delicately patted the ends of her hair.

"Hey, guys!" Katara called out as she entered through the door, "check this out!"

"What is it?" Aang curiously asked while in the middle of his stretches.

"We got something in the mail," Katara informed, holding up a piece of paper.

The first thing that the group noticed about the parchment was that it looked pretty important; none of the edges were ripped and the words on the paper were very neat and precise.

"*ahem* Dear recipient," she began after clearing her throat, "You are hereby invited to a party held for the Earth King later on tonight. The gathering will begin at 8:00pm, please wear the proper attire. Thank you."

"A party?" Aang wondered, "tonight? Well, that's sudden."

"Actually…this could work for us," Sokka said with a thoughtful expression as he stood up.

Walking around the room slowly, the water tribe boy held his finger to his chin, "If the Earth King is attending the party, then maybe we could find a way to talk to him."

"I guess it's possible," Katara said as she watched her brother pace back and forth, "I mean, it couldn't hurt; it's definitely much better than waiting a whole month."

"That's true," Aang noted.

"Alright, then it's agreed. Looks like we're going to a party, baby!" Sokka exclaimed as he pointed into the air.

"In your dreams…" muttered Toph from the other end of the room, "This party is going to be full of high-society people. They'd smell commoners like you from a mile away."

"Ummm, What does that mean?" Sokka returned, feigning ignorance.

"Look at you guys. You've got no manners. You're have no idea how to socialize with the wealthy," Toph explained as she picked the inside of her ear.

"'Manners'?" Sokka said, staring at the blind girl as she wiped ear wax onto the rug, "you're one to talk."

"I can choose whether to have manners or not," Toph stated, "but you guys were never even taught the basics of proper etiquette."

"Oh yeah? Well, I know how to chew with my mouth shut," Sokka bragged.

"…Good for you," the blind girl said, unamused.

"You two are a lost cause. The only one who has a chance at all is Katara."

Upon hearing those words, Katara flashed a smile to an irritated Sokka.

"Hey, what does she have that I don't have?" he asked.

"Functioning brain cells," Toph bluntly retorted, causing Aang and Katara to slightly giggle.

Sokka gave the blind earthbender an annoyed look before quickly succumbing to the laughter of the other two.

**Back with Accelerator…**

The white-haired teen hadn't moved since the last time he spoke, and his eyes had been firmly set on the outstretch of the city as he contemplated several thoughts that had bothered him as of late.

Hearing the sound of footsteps behind him, Accelerator lazily glanced behind him only to look up to the Fire Nation princess. Azula stared down at him, her eyes were calm but there seemed to be a fire behind them.

"Get up. We have plans that we need to discuss in regards to infiltrating the Earth King's party," she said.

The esper gave her a studied glance as he looked her up and down; his traveling gaze made Azula glare at him even more.

"Is there something you wish to say?" she demanded, placing her hands aggressively on her hips.

Accelerator shifted his weight to his palms as he pushed himself off from the ground and slowly stood up straight; although they were fairly similar in terms of height, Accelerator's slight size advantage was highlighted as he peered down at the princess.

"I could ask you the same question," he said in a monotone voice.

Azula stiffened her jaw and straightened her back slightly in response to the esper's statement, "I have nothing to say to you," she said.

Accelerator's expression remained motionless as he scanned the details of the girl's face, looking for any sign whatsoever. After letting out a quick sigh, the esper made a clicking sound with his tongue as he passed by the still princess and headed to the edge of the roof.

"Jeez, what's with this attitude all of a sudden? Didn't your mom ever teach you manners?" he passively said as he continued to walk away from her.

"…what did you say?" she silently whispered after a few seconds of silence.

Ignoring the princess, perhaps because he didn't quite hear her, Accelerator continued to walk away, increasing his distance with every stride.

As the esper continued to near the edge, he felt a sudden yet intense wave of heat wash over him; familiar specks of blue embers danced around his body. Curiously turning around, he tilted his head in confusion upon seeing Azula crouched down into an attack position. He had turned just in time to see the remaining flames that she sent in his direction before they dispersed into the air.

"Hey, what the hell are you –", he began, but he didn't have time to finish before Azula rushed directly at him.

"TAKE IT BACK!" she growled.

Engulfing her own hands in fire, Azula sprinted towards the esper and stopped once she got close enough. Balling her hand into a fist, she let the flames flow in between her fingers as she reached for Accelerator's face; narrowly missing her target, the princess watched as he quickly dodged her attack.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" the white-haired teen asked.

"Don't ever mention my mother again," she muttered, shooting Accelerator with the most shock-inducing glare he'd ever seen.

Quickly jumping up into the air, allowing her feet to leave the ground, Azula rotated her body as she flew closer to him; kicking her legs out – first the left one, then the right one – she continued the momentum as she delivered the attacks. Easily blocking each of her kicks with his ESP field, the esper focused on her movements as she spun in the air. Landing on the ground, Azula immediately swept her leg close to the floor in a circular fashion as she aimed for Accelerator's knee; feeling the solid pressure from the esper's field once more, she grunted in annoyance. Rotating her body once more, the Fire Nation princess spun on her toes as the other leg delivered a round-house kick to the side of Accelerator's face. A grin spread on her face, but it immediately disappeared after realizing his hand had moved up to block the attack. Taking a few steps back, Azula let out an angered growl of defeat.

"DAMNIT!" she cursed, smashing the ground with her fists.

Accelerator stared down at the enraged princess, both out of shock and confusion; allowing her hair to droop down over her face, Azula remained quietly on the ground for a few seconds, not making a word.

The esper continued to look down at her, wondering what the reason was for this sudden outbreak; he admitted, things had gotten pretty heated earlier, but he didn't think she would straight-up attack him.

"Jeez, what is your problem?" he said, confusion evident in his voice.

The girl before him remained motionless and refused to say anything back to him. Seemingly, several minutes passed as Accelerator waited for some kind of response from Azula.

"I've made up my mind," she said as she stood back up.

The thick, black locks of hair still hung over her face, but now Accelerator could see her eyes as they glared back at him.

"You're nothing but a distraction," she continued, "Just a waste of time. I have a mission to complete, and you're getting in the way. So, I've made up my mind….I've decided that you are no longer a part of this team. – I have no use for you. I am hereby cutting off all of your ties to the Fire Nation effective immediately. Have fun on your own."

Her final words came out like daggers before she turned back around and headed for the edge of the roof.

"You're useless…" she said as she jumped off the side of the roof from the esper's line of sight.

Accelerator had no words that he could possibly say – he couldn't think of any. So, there, for the next few minutes, the esper stood in absolute silence as he angrily starred down at the ground before him.

**End of Chapter 20**

Author's Note: _Comment. Just comment._


	21. Chapter 21: Infiltrating the Party

**Chapter 21: Infiltrating the Party**

"Earth!"

"Fire!"

Sokka and Aang sat down on the ground, cross-legged, playing a short game as they waited for Katara and Toph to return from the dressing room. Aang smiled, realizing he had won that round and proceeded to flick Sokka on the forehead, as per the rules of the game.

Soon, the door to the dressing room finally slid open, revealing a freshly pampered Toph and Katara; the two of them wore silk-like robes, and the gentle fabric softly draped over their frames. Holding a pair of stylized fans in each hand, both girls giggled at the frozen faces of the boys in front of them. They had been in that room for the past few hours, but the sudden change in their appearance was still surprising.

"Wow, you look beautiful," Aang fawned with an infatuated gaze.

Katara opened her mouth to respond to the airbender but was immediately stopped by Toph's folded fan covering her lips.

"Don't talk to the commoners," the blind girl instructed with a firm voice.

"If this is how you guys will enter the party, how will we get in?" Sokka asked, gesturing to himself and his bald friend.

"Don't worry. We'll find a way to sneak you two in. Otherwise, you can just dress up as waiters and enter that way," Toph replied, although the second half of her statement sounded like a joke.

For the next few minutes, the teens talked about the remaining details of their plan, but the time for the party to begin was slowly closing in. Eventually, the four of them left the house and quickly caught a carriage as it headed to the Earth King's palace; passing by the blocks of populated streets on their way there, the teens couldn't help but feel excited at attending such a high-profile party. The carriage dropped them off at the front walkway to the palace before it turned around and headed back onto the main street. Staring up at the absolute majesty of the Earth King's palace, the four friends took a moment to take in the size of the building.

Toph was the first to speak up upon seeing the line to enter into the party; dozens of people were waiting patiently in front of the entrance, all gossiping and talking with one another. Heading to the back of the line, Katara and Toph waited until it was their turn to enter.

**Meanwhile, somewhere in Ba Sing Se…**

Azula and Ty Lee quietly snuck through the back entrance to the Earth King's palace; although they were already dressed in the Dai Li uniforms, they still tried to keep their presence hidden, at least until they got into the party.

"Uhhh, Azula," Ty Lee whispered, prompting the princess to slightly hum to indicate she was listening.

"Why isn't Accelerator going with us?" she asked, curiosity adorned her face.

"Like I said, my reasons for not bringing him is of not concern to you," Azula shot back.

"Well, yeah, but I thought we needed him to cause a distraction in order for the plan to work," Ty Lee continued.

"Change of plans," Azula said, "You're going to be the distraction."

"What?! Me?!" the girl screamed back.

"Shhhh. Quiet down," Azula shushed, with a finger over her lips.

"But, Azula, I….I can't do that. If I get caught, there's no way I can fight all of those Dai Li agents by myself," she said, resuming her whispering voice.

"You don't have to fight them," the Fire princess stated, "you just have to create some sort of commotion that distracts them from protecting the Earth King."

"How am I supposed to do that?" Ty Lee begged.

"Figure it out," Azula spat.

Ty Lee lowered her head in defeat and nervousness, "Why are you being like this?" she said, allowing her words to linger in the air for a moment.

"What did you say?" the princess angrily asked, turning around to face Ty Lee.

"Oh, uh, Nothing," the scared girl said, putting her hands up in defense.

Azula merely looked at her with an expression of lasting irritation even as she turned back around; continuing along the path that led up to a large entrance, the two girls walked into the reverent abode of the Earth King's palace and wandered down its halls.

Azula's gaze was set ahead of her, but in truth, she wasn't paying attention to where she was going; her mind was wandering, and she passively let it do so.

What exactly was her reason for cutting off her ties with the white-haired esper? If she considered everything he had done in their time together, hardly any of it was worth severing his connection with her, and to that extent the Fire Nation itself. Truthfully, there was nothing he had really done 'wrong', it was actually quite the opposite – he was the most helpful and trustworthy person she had ever met, at least in battle. He was fearless and ruthless, two traits that she valued highly and were almost impossible to find.

So what was her reason for leaving him alone? It wasn't for any practical reason, that was for sure; he was practically the definition of a 'Trump Card' – overwhelmingly useful in almost every situation. No, her reason for doing so was rooted in something else. But what?

Azula's eyes slightly widened as a single consideration crossed her mind.

It was what he said to her the night prior, when he called her 'beautiful'. Of course, the simple act of complimenting her wasn't anywhere near enough for her to cut him off, but it was definitely what sparked her to take such an action. When he said that, in all honesty, she questioned his motivations; what reason would he have for telling her that? – other than the fact that it would allow him to get into her good graces. Maybe he only complimented her because he knew it would benefit him in the long run.

Azula shook her head in a blatant attempt to rid herself of such thoughts; these things were irrelevant – the only thing that was important was the mission at hand. Continuing down the hall, Azula and Ty Lee suddenly slowed to a stop upon seeing a Dai Li agent emerge from a room to their right. Turning his head in their direction, the agent proceeded to walk towards them, getting closer with every stride.

"Azula, what do we do?" Ty Lee whispered.

"Shhh. Keep quiet. Let me handle this," the princess shot back.

While in the midst of walking, the Dai Li agent decided to speak up, "Hey, you two, what are you doing over here? The party is going to begin in a few minutes, and we need everyone in position as we bring the King out."

Azula bowed to the man in silence, signifying she understood his 'orders'; the man gave her a blank look and studied her for a second before he turned back around and headed down the hall.

"Follow me," he commanded, prompting the two girls to reluctantly quicken their pace in pursuit.

As they walked, Azula stared intently at the man's back; he hadn't said much, but the look he gave her was enough for her to become slightly suspicious. Almost as if moving in single file, the three of them walked into a large, spacious room that was the size of a moderately sized courtyard.

Covering the majority of the room were rows upon rows of tables, each one covered with an expensive-looking linen cloth; candles were set up in the center of them, although they had not yet been lit. Wide columns shot up from the floor and stretched to the ceiling, emphasizing the hugeness of the room even further. As Ty Lee and Azula continued to follow the Dai Li agent, they were surprised to see a line of other agents that were positioned against the wall, all of which were facing the room.

"Here, you two shall wait in position until it is time to bring the Earth King out," he said before turning around and swiftly leaving the room once more.

Azula slightly turned her head, just enough to get a view of the Dai Li agents she stood next to; there were about 10 of them that stood motionlessly against the wall, as per their orders. It's like they were a row of mindless dolls – totally devoid of soul and character. Azula would've been creeped out a little, if not for the fact that her very own Fire Nation soldiers displayed the same type of mechanical devotion.

The situation was becoming much too complicated; she didn't expect that she would be expected to do things like this – it was messing with her plan. Now, she had to be careful not to break character, or else her cover would be found out. The only thing she could do now was to just stay put until the party began.

Within the next few minutes, some people began to enter the large room and sit down at their designated seats; at first it was somewhat unnoticeable, but very soon more and more people started to show up and take their seats. The sounds of social mingling began to gradually increase as the attendants engaged each other in casual conversation and friendly banter. Pretty soon, the whole room seemed like it was full of people, and the echoes of murmuring filled the entirety of the space.

Caterers were also present, walking up to people and presenting them with the impressive spread of horderves that covered the plates. Some of the guests held glasses of wine in between their fingers as they laughed and cheered over whatever topic of conversation interested them.

As she watched the events of the party unfold in front of her, Azula's attention was quickly grabbed by the sudden approach of a man who walked up to the center of the room and ascended atop a stage-like platform, turning to the group of people.

"Dear invited guests," the man began, holding his arms out in a welcoming fashion; the volume of the room lowered to a respectful hush as he spoke.

Having the guests' undivided attention, the man continued, "I am Long Feng – personal Chancellor to the Earth King. It is an honor for me to announce that the party shall begin in a few moments; the Earth King himself places a great amount of emphasis on the importance of this gathering and its guests. The peace in Ba Sing Se has lasted for hundreds of years, all of which may be dedicated to the Earth King's rule as well as his predecessor, so it is only right that we celebrate such a momentous achievement by enjoying the bountiful feast that have been made by our finest chefs. So please - eat up, and 'Long live the Earth King'."

The man, Long Feng, concluded the speech as he reached for a small glass of wine on the table nearest to him; after raising it into the air, in a toast-like manner, the man then took a small sip of the golden drink.

"Long live the Earth King!" the crowd of people chanted in unison, following Long Feng's lead as they raised their glasses as well.

Giving his audience a small smile, he then walked off from the platform and made his way to the back wall of the room as the guests resumed their conversations, filling the chamber once again with noise.

Azula straightened her back a little as she watched Long Fend slowly approach the line of Dai Li agents who all waited patiently for him; taking a look at his garments, Azula could tell he was definitely ranked quite high within the Earth King's officers.

One of the Dai Li agents stepped forward, the same one who led Azula and Ty Lee into the room, and he gave a type of salute to Long Feng who merely nodded his head.

"Captain, are your soldiers prepared?" he questioned with an intense stare.

"Yes, sir," the soldier quickly replied, "before the event begins, I have something to tell you sir. In private, if I may."

Giving the Captain a strange look, Long Feng joined with him mere feet away from the rest of the Dai Li agents; as the two of them talked quietly amongst themselves, Azula couldn't help but try to listen in on their conversation. Their words were practically silent as the Captain whispered something to his superior; glancing over at them after realizing that relying on her ears was pointless, the Fire Nation princess decided to read their lips instead. Even then, it was nearly impossible to get anything from the conversation, but something about Long Feng's facial expression made her wonder what exactly they were talking about.

Almost as quickly as they had walked away, they returned – Long Feng regained his composure before he turned back to the Dai Li agents.

"Gentlemen, I'm afraid there's been a sudden change of plans," he began, placing his arms behind his back, "apparently there's been an altercation somewhere in the palace. I require some of you to quickly accompany me to deal with this matter."

Glancing over the row of Dai Li agents that lined the wall, Long Feng then freed one arm from behind his back as he pointed his finger.

"You, you, you, you, and you – come with me," he commanded.

Among the five that were selected, Azula and Ty Lee were surprised that they were both chosen; not having much choice in the matter, the two of them joined the group as all of them followed Long Feng across the room. Coming to an entrance on the far end of the room, the group of Dai Li agents walked into a dimly lit room that cut them off from the bright glamour of the party; the sounds of the guests died down as they walked further into the room.

Azula cautiously looked around the room while the agents in front of her continued onward; she didn't like how thing were going one bit. Glancing back a little behind her, she took a look at Ty Lee who seemed just as concerned as Azula was.

Coming to a large couch that sat at the back end of the room, Long Feng turned to the group as he carelessly sat down.

"You know, I've been a part of the Earth King's cabinet for years now," he said as he slowly opened a bottle of champagne and poured it into a small glass that sat on a table in front of him, "I know practically everything that goes on within this city's walls; the arrival of the avatar was of no surprise to me…"

His voice trailed off as he took a generous sip of the contents within the glass.

"However, what HAS surprised me is something that I'm going to take full advantage of," he said, before pauseing.

"Gentlemen, it has come to my attention that there are individuals who entered Ba Sing Se without me knowing about it; these people are not supposed to be here. And yet….they're standing directly in front of me."

His final words hit Azula like a hammer, and her heart began to quicken.

"There are two individuals in this room right now who must take me for a fool," he droned on with a hint of anger, "however, I only care about the presence of one of them."

"Tell me: did you truly think you could deceive me?..." he leaned in with a sinister smile, "…Princess Azula."

**End of Chapter 21**

Author's Note: _Wooooooooooooooooooooooooooaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! What's gonna happen next? – who cares, how about a poem to calm everyone down:_

_Roses are red,_

_Violets are blue,_

_If you love your parents,_

_Then please comment soon._


	22. Chapter 22: Caught (Re-uploaded)

**Chapter 22: Caught**

The Fire Nation princess was caught off guard and a slight twinge of fear flashed in her eyes. Almost instinctively, Azula took a step back but was quickly cornered by the other agents; two of the guards grabbed both of her wrists so she couldn't escape and forced them behind her back. The other guard did the same thing, taking advantage of Ty Lee's surprise to subdue her before she could react.

Long Feng stood up from the couch, still holding the glass of champagne in his hand as he approached the two detained girls.

"I don't know what you're doing here, princess of the Fire Nation, but I can tell you this: it was a mistake to come to Ba Sing Se," he growled.

Gently grabbing the Dai Li hat that rested on Azula's head, he slowly removed it to reveal the angry scowl of the girl beneath.

"I'll kill you for this," she warned with gritted teeth.

"Oh? My, my, what a bold statement to make, especially considering what situation you're currently in," Long Feng noted with a grin.

"How did you even know I was here?" the princess questioned as she struggled against the grip of the two guards.

Finishing the liquid from the glass with one final swig, the man carefully set the cup back down on the table before he spoke, "I have eyes and ears everywhere in this town. Each of my Dai Li agents were trained to recognize and report any suspicious activity to me."

As he continued to talk, Long Feng began to pace in front of the two girls, "Strange things have been occurring in the walls of this city lately, things that didn't make any sense. For instance, one of the Earth King's generals went missing, perhaps you know of him – General Sung."

Azula said nothing, but her blood ran cold as he continued on.

The last time he was seen was yesterday evening, however, now it's as though he simply disappeared. What's more, when I sent my agents out to find him, I was told something very strange. One of the agents came upon a room in the palace, close to General Sung's last known location; in this room, he found what could only described as 'scorch marks' on the walls – the kind made by fire. Isn't that interesting? Especially when there was nothing in that room that could've started a fire, let alone scorch anything."

Azula's eyes began to widen; it was so stupid of her not to realize. When she killed General Sung, the flames from her bending must have burnt the plaster on the walls.

"When I was informed of this, I thought, 'hmmm. Now what could've started a fire without the assistance of flammable material?' Then the answer came to me – a Fire Bender. You see, princess Azula, you may have been able to hide General Sung's body, but you forgot to get rid of ALL the evidence. And, 'yes', I know you killed him."

The princess clicked her tongue in absolute disappointment – how could she fail to take care of something so minor. A rage began to build up inside of her as she mentally cursed herself for such a mistake.

Long Feng couldn't help but smirk at the faces Azula was making; the act of triumphing over one's enemy was quite a rush. Turning his back on the princess, he then made his way over to a small box that sat atop a counter in the back of the room.

"This brings me to my next question," he said as he slowly opened the lid to the box, "Why are you here at this party? It's definitely not the case that you just wanted to enjoy your time in Ba Sing Se. No, no, no. The ONLY conceivable reason you would be here is for the Earth King – an assassination, perhaps."

Azula's heart sunk the more he talked; he knew everything she had done while in the city, and he even guessed what her intentions were at the party. Slowly, as if trying to add to the tension, Long Feng pulled out a small dagger from the confines of the box and inspected it thoughtfully. The blade, although quite short in dimension, was intricately embroidered with a golden hilt and small gems that ran along the side of the handle.

Cradling the object in his hand, Long Feng walked over to the restrained fire bender, "You know, I could kill you now if I wanted – stab you directly in the heart, and nobody would know a thing."

"Of course you would. Cowardly men always act the same way," Azula growled, prompting the man to momentarily turn his gaze to the other girl in the room.

"And who is this beauty that you have brought with you?" Long Feng wondered as he strode over to a timid Ty Lee, "One of your comrades, perhaps?"

Azula kept silent but watched as he gracefully raised the knife to Ty Lee's throat, barely touching her skin.

"Tell me," he said, looking down at the wide-eyed brunette, "how did you and the princess enter this city in the first place?"

Ty Lee tightened up her quivering lip and glared at Long Feng in defiance, "I won't tell you anything," she said.

The man scoffed as he pressed the tip of the knife further against her throat. "Do you doubt that I will kill you if you refuse to answer my questions?"

"She has nothing to say to you," Azula interjected, prompting the guards beside her to roughly shake her as a signal to be quiet.

Taking the time to walk over to the overzealous princess, Long Feng didn't even bat an eye as he delivered a frightful slap across Azula's pale face, causing the girl to grunt in sudden pain. A small blotch of red appeared on her cheeks almost immediately afterward as he walked back to Ty Lee, once again placing the tip of the blade against her throat.

"How about we play a game," he said. "Every time you refuse to answer me, you shall receive a scar upon your body."

Ty Lee shook her head in defiance, although that was mainly because the act of speaking was difficult due to her being on the verge of tears. She was scared, and it seemed like her knew it.

"I repeat: how did you two enter into Ba Sing Se?" he asked.

Again, the brown-haired girl remained silent.

Slash!

Ty Lee suddenly felt a narrow slice of pain cut across her right cheek, and she flinched as soon as it happened; her eyes closed shut, almost automatically, upon feeling the tip of the blade slide through her skin. Slowly opening her eyes, she gulped as she stared at a thin layer of blood that now coated the knife.

Long Feng placed his free fingers beneath her chin and lifted her head up until she was staring directly into his eyes, "You didn't answer," he said calmly.

"I'll ask again: how did the two of you enter into Ba Sing Se?" he asked.

The girl said nothing, but this time her defiance had been replaced with slight whimpers.

Slash!

The same pain again – this time it traveled along the side of her shoulder. She flinched.

"How did you enter Ba Sing Se?" he repeated.

Her whimpering turned into soft crying, but still she said nothing.

Slash!

Slash!

Two wounds this time – one along her arm and the other in the center of her palm.

"How did you enter Ba Sing Se?!" Long Feng demanded with obvious irritation in his voice.

Small tear streamed down her face now as she braced for more.

Griping the knife in his hand, Long Feng raised the weapon into the air – Azula's eyes widened and she gasped. All of the wounds from before were relatively shallow, but this one looked like he was actually going to kill the girl. As the blade quickly came down, Azula realized that he was aiming for Ty Lee's head.

Suddenly, before he could follow through on his assault, Long Feng stopped just shy of Ty Lee's face upon hearing a thunderous 'BOOM' echo throughout the room. Long Feng quickly realized the noise didn't come from the room itself but rather from the ballroom where the party was being held. The guards had apparently heard it too, given the fact that they looked at each other in confusion. Whatever the source of that sound was, it had been large enough to shake the very room itself, albeit only slightly.

A look of grave concern crossed Long Feng's face as he quickly placed the knife down on the table and rushed towards the door. The Dai Li captain was waiting directly outside the room for him with a particularly worrying look.

"Captain, what in the world was that?" he angrily asked.

The Captain straightened up at Long Feng's approach, "I am unsure sir. It appears the source of that noise came from beyond the front doors."

Long Feng turned his head and glanced towards the front of the room; staring past the groups of party-goers, who had all apparently heard the sound as well, Long Feng looked at the two large doors that had been closed since the party began. The doors themselves were large, about 20 feet in height, and their size was truly only matched by their sturdiness. Being composed of a combination of solid rock and metal, the door was much too large for any single individual to open alone; usually, the door required two well-trained earth benders to open – although that was mainly for security purposes.

BOOM!

Yet again, a powerful force banged on the door from the other side as if something was trying to enter. The conversations within the party room died down to a hushed silence as everyone watched the door with baited breath. The BOOM echoed again, this time followed by a wretched snap as the hinges of the doors finally collapsed.

Long Feng watched, wide-eyed, as one of the doors fell to the floor with an earsplitting 'thud'; dust from the forced entry had been kicked up and now swirled around the open entrance as the guests began to gasp and whisper amongst one another. By this time, many of the Dai Li agents had taken defensive positions in wait of the arriving enemy. Squinting into the cloud of dust, Long Feng could bearly make out the figure of a thin boy in the wake of the grime. But his attention was heightened even more by a pair of floating red eyes that seemed to illuminate the dirt that floated in the air.

The sight was both hypnotic and terrifying; so much so, that Long Feng could've sworn he heard one of the Dai Li agents whisper something behind him.

"Demon…."

Then, emerging from the cloud was a young boy, perhaps 15 or 16 years old, with a blank facial expression as he looked around the room.

"'Sup," he said.

**End of Chapter 22**

Author's Note: _So...it's been a while, hasn't it? I know you guys have been practically starving for a new chapter to the story; I know that you've been frothing at the mouth for more; I know that you would KILL to read the next chapter. Well, wait no more - I'm finally back. Lol._

_Ok, so to be more serious, the main reason why I couldn't add any more chapters was basically that for the last few months, I didn't have access to any laptop or computer that I could use to add any more to the story; even my local library (along with its computer lab), was closed due to the whole covid-19 thing. Don't worry though, I wasn't infected or anything. But now that things are settling down, and because I now have a new temporary computer for school, I will try to work more on this story._

_Thank you all very much for your patience! I hope everyone else is doing well, and I will see you in the next chapter. Thanks!_


	23. Chapter 23: The Boy With the White Hair

**Chapter 23: The Boy With the White Hair**

[Several minutes ago]

With Aang and the group…

Before the party had started, Aang and Sokka agreed that the other two would not be able to let them in, so they decided to find their own way inside. Dressing up as the waiters, the two boys snuck inside without much of a problem, it was almost like nobody even cared to check waiters' identities. Wandering into the palace and finding the entrance to the party room, both boys stared at the expanse of the massive room in awe; to say that this room was just 'big' was an understatement to say the least. Weaving their way through the guests who loudly talked amongst each other, Aang and Sokka worked to find Katara and Toph somewhere in the crowd. Initially, they didn't think it would be that difficult to find two people they would recognize in a party full of unfamiliar faces, but that thought was pushed aside once they saw the sea of people that filled the chamber.

"You see them?" Sokka asked, balancing a plate of horderves in his left hand to play the role of a waiter.

"No, not yet," Aang swiftly replied as one of the guests took an item of food from his plate, "how about you?"

"Are you kidding? I almost lost track of you twice – and I'm standing right next to you," he exclaimed.

"Excuse me," came a voice from beside the startled boys, "I'll take whatever you're serving."

Looking to their left, Aang and Sokka were relieved to find Toph standing next to them with Katara in tow.

"Finally, we found you," Sokka said with a thankful sigh.

"Technically, 'We' found 'You'," Katara noted with a giggle.

"Yeah, whatever. Have you seen the Earth King yet?" the water tribe boy began, eager to get down to business.

"We haven't exactly had the chance to do much of anything. The guy we came in with won't leave us alone, and he's basically been following us for the past ten minutes," Toph explained.

"What guy?" Sokka asked, peering around the room.

Toph and Katara both turned their heads simultaneously (although more so Katara than Toph) and glanced around the room.

"I guess he's gone," Katara stated thankfully, "I hope we don't bump into him again."

Aang's attention was soon grabbed by a man who walked up to a small stage-like structure in the center of the room; after ascending the steps and turning to face the majority of guests in the room, he took a deep breath and began to loudly speak.

"Dear invited guests," the man began, holding his arms out in a welcoming fashion; the volume of the room lowered to a respectful hush as he spoke.

"Wait, that's him – that's the guy," Toph said, immediately recognizing the man's voice.

"Him?" Sokka said, turning to face the spectacle.

Having the guests' undivided attention, the man continued, "I am Long Feng – personal Chancellor to the Earth King. It is an honor for me to announce that the party shall begin in a few moments."

The guests in the audience smiled at the notion of the start of the event, and some of them even raised their glasses in a toast-like fashion as Long Feng spoke.

"The Earth King himself places a great amount of emphasis on the importance of this gathering and its guests," he continued, "The peace in Ba Sing Se has lasted for hundreds of years, all of which may be dedicated to the Earth King's rule as well as his predecessors, so it is only right that we celebrate such a momentous achievement by enjoying the bountiful feast that has been made by our finest chefs. So please - eat up, and 'Long live the Earth King'."

There was a respectful applause as the man descended down the steps once again and vanished into the crowd. The murmuring of the guests resumed as people returned back to their conversations prior to the announcement and engaged once more in the enjoyment in each other's company. By this point in time, the party had technically started, and the large front doors were being closed to provide the event with the privacy it deserved.

"If the party started already, then where is the Earth King?" Sokka muttered angrily; he wanted to cross his arms to further illustrate his irritation, but the presence of the plate in his hand made it difficult.

"Maybe they're only going to bring him out once the doors are closed. You know, for safety reasons," Aang wondered.

"That…..actually makes sense, Aang," Sokka yielded with a slight chuckle.

Once the doors had finally been closed and the room was secured, some of the soldiers that lined the back wall proceeded to watch as a small palanquin was brought into the room. Thin veils of green fabric shielded the inside of the structure from view, but it seemed evident that the Earth King sat within its confines.

"That must be him – The Earth King," Katara said, although the rest of the group was already thinking that.

"Now's as good a time as ever, gang," Sokka motioned with a confident smirk, "we have to make our way over to the Earth King."

"Gotcha," Aang acknowledged as he hurriedly walked between the conglomerates of party-goers.

Awkwardly moving around and past guests as they absentmindedly shuffled through the room was quite a rough task. At some point in time, the young airbender could've sworn that someone stepped directly on his foot and accidentally elbowed him in the gut. Still, the journey over to the Earth King was relatively quick and uneventful – he just hoped he didn't draw too much attention to himself. Just then, through a combination of poor concentration and unintentional coincidence, Aang bumped into someone and watched as the plate full of food landed on them.

It was a woman, who judging by her attire and posh attitude, was probably of relatively high standing in Ba Sing Se.

Oops.

The woman whirled around, looked at her dress, and then stared back at Aang with a look of wordless astonishment on her face; her mouth curled into a frown and her lip quivered as if she was going to start crying.

"Shhh. No, no, don't scream," Aang pleaded, placing a finger on his mouth to signify silence.

Then, thinking of nothing else to do, he outstretched his hand and allowed a sudden gust of wind to rise up in a feeble attempt to clean her dress off. The technique seemed to work, at least it rid her clothes of any stains, but now the sheer force of the wind seemed to have messed up her hair and a large portion of her makeup.

Thankfully, the woman didn't look like she was going to cry now; instead, he surprised face morphed into a relatively excited face at his presence.

"Oh, the Avatar!" she exclaimed, staring down at him, "I didn't know the Avatar would be showing up here."

As she spoke, the woman attracted the attention of some of the other guests, and within the matter of a couple of seconds Aang was surrounded by a group of fascinated people who all stared at him as they talked amongst each other. Aang looked over at his friends and gave them a sheepish smile as Sokka pinched the bridge of his nose and shook his head - a commotion was the last thing they needed right now.

Suddenly, there was a loud BOOM sound that caused everyone in the room to turn their heads over to the entrance doors, including the guests that surrounded Aang.

The entire room felt like it shook; Aang looked up at the chandeliers to see them gently swaying from the ceiling. Glancing over his shoulder, Aang watched as Long Feng emerged from a separate chamber off to the side of the main party room, he looked quite irritated – as if he had been just been interrupted. After walking out, he joined up with a man closer to the back of the room; the man, possibly a soldier due to his wardrobe, leaned closer to Long Feng as if to inform him of something.

A few moments later, there was a second one.

BOOM!

The soldiers at the back end of the room took defensive positions as they kept their eyes on the door; it seemed like no one knew what was going on. Taking advantage of the stillness of the guests, Aang started to make his way back to his friends; they seemed to be just as curious as the rest of the guests, keeping their eyes steadily on the gigantic metal doors.

"What's going on?" Aang asked, hoping that someone had some answers.

"No idea," Toph returned.

Then, there was a third one – BOOM!

Almost immediately after this one occurred, there was a loud snapping sound that echoed throughout the chamber. Aang gasped as he watched the hinges on one of the massive doors break away; the stifling atmosphere within the party room was enough to make most of the guests start to panic and back away from the entrance. Then, almost as if moving on its own, the doors fell all the way down onto the carpeted ground with a thunderous sound. A mist of dust particles collected and lingered in the air as everyone in the room held their breaths in wait of what would enter the room.

There was silence at first, but soon the echoing of soft footsteps made their way into the room; Aang felt a chill run down his spine as he spotted a thin figure move through the dust cloud. Looking over to the faces of his friends, he was sure he wasn't the only one who felt so….terrified.

Toph probably had it the worst – she was visibly shaking.

Even through the vagueness of the mist, Aang could make out the movement of two, red eyes that cut through the dust.

The first thing that emerged was enough to confirm the group's worst fears; the sight of white-hair made them all stiffen up as they waited for the rest of the figure to be revealed.

It didn't take too long – first was the white hair, second was the pair of red eyes, and third was the pale skin.

"'Sup," he motioned with a slight head nod.

'The Boy with the White Hair' had come to Ba Sing Se.

**End of Chapter 23**

Author's Note: _Hey, guys, I hope you're all doing well. The past few chapters were pretty short, I admit, but it's with good reason. You see, I wanted to flesh out the situation a bit more, something I don't think I did too well in the last chapter. Although many people may not think that Aang's part of the story is necessarily important, I wanted to add this perspective of the story because I feel it will inform how the rest of the story will go._

_Anyway, enough of my babbling, here's a short haiku:_

_Creativity_

_Originally has been_

_Made real by man/_

_Memory without_

_Emotion, is just data._

_Nature has them both/_

_The end._

_*I wonder if there's a hidden message in there. Hmmmmmm. (Trust me, it's not hard to find – let me know if you found it.)_


	24. Chapter 24: Crashing the Party

**Chapter 24: Crashing the Party**

The next few moments were full of a combination of apprehension and wonder. The room stunk of uncertainty.

"Who are you?" Long Feng demanded with a line of Dai Li agents behind him.

"None of your business," the white haired boy responded with a glare.

Looking around the room, scanning the faces of the guests, Accelerator moved forward into the crowd; people moved to the side, splitting apart to reveal the open floor to the dull-faced esper.

"Stop!" Long Feng commanded.

"Calm down, asshole," Accelerator growled, "I'm not here to crash your party or anything. I just happen to be looking for someone."

"Looking for someone?" the man repeated, confused. His eyes darted around the room as if he was searching for who the boy was talking about.

His face froze in understanding as he considered something; was the boy looking for the princess? - Azula.

Long Feng, grasping the situation finally, straightened himself up and regained his composure as he looked over at Accelerator, "I may know who you're looking for. Perhaps, we can help each other?"

"Oh? What does that mean?" the esper wondered with a lidded stare.

Clearing his throat into a half-closed fist, Long Feng continued with a controlled voice, "I can show you to who you are looking for; however, you must agree to do something for me first."

He spoke with a confident smirk and a calculating gaze.

"'Something for you'?" Accelerated repeated with a chuckle; the chuckle quickly turned into a laugh; and the laugh morphed into a cackle that terrifyingly hung in the air.

Finally allowing his laugh to calm down, Accelerator returned to his calm demeanor, "Do I look stupid to you? I didn't come here to form a contract with you; I came here on a mission of sorts – and I don't care who I have to go through to complete it."

Long Feng snorted through his nostrils, tilting his head at the teen disappointedly, "I see. It seems there's nothing I can say to stop you. I warn you, then, if you continue to advance I shall have no choice but to destroy you. You may be powerful – I can tell – but you are outnumbered."

Shifting his weight to look around Long Feng's figure at the line of Dai Li agents, he proceeded to count them; one, two, three….five, six….nine, ten – Fifteen. There were fifteen agents.

"Fifteen?" Accelerator said.

Long Feng narrowed his eyes, "Yes….do you yield?"

"Yield?' heh, this will only take twenty seconds; thirty at the most," the esper replied, placing his hands in his pockets and taking a step forward.

"ATTACK!" screamed Long Feng with the wave of his hand.

In one simultaneous movement, the entire line of Dai Li agents thrusted their fists forwards; black, glove-like appendages shot ahead and sailed through the air towards the esper, who stood motionlessly on the carpet.

"Too slow," Accelerator whispered.

Placing his foot down strongly on the floor, he remained still as a thunderous shockwave dispersed throughout the room and altered the path of the attacks. Missing him by several meters, some of the gloves mindlessly shot into the crowds of screaming guests; before they could hit any of the bystanders however, they were stopped by the combination of water, rock, and air from somewhere in the crowd.

"That's enough," came a voice from behind the esper.

Turning around to face the source of the voice, Accelerator came to a bored glare upon seeing Aang standing amongst the myriad of guests.

"What are you doing here?" the white haired teen asked with a sigh. He was already bored with the presence of the young airbender.

"That doesn't matter right now," Aang returned with seriousness in his voice, "Whatever you're doing here is threatening the lives of these innocent people."

Toph, Katara, and Sokka all stood behind the bald boy, keeping a careful eye on the esper.

Before Accelerator could respond, some of the Dai Li members leapt from their stations and approached him quickly in order to take advantage of his sudden lapse of concentration. But their efforts were quickly crushed by a swift current of air that blew them to the ground.

"Stop! You can't fight in here. There are too many people you could hurt," Aang pleaded, holding his staff firmly in one hand.

"Ah, the Avatar," hissed Long Feng, "Are you working with the intruder?"

"What? No!" Aang said, taken aback by his sudden claim.

"Then why will you not allow my forces to take care of him? Why are you protecting him?" Long Feng pushed.

"I'm not protecting him. I'm protecting the guests – the one's who you're supposed to be protecting," Aang retorted.

Ignoring the avatar's point, Long Feng growled, "Don't interfere."

"I won't let you hurt anyone," the boy stated.

"SHUT UP!" Accelerator screamed; the entire room began to shake - a few of the chandeliers fell from the ceiling and crashed down onto the carpeted ground bellow.

"I don't care if you two argue, but I still have people I need to find," he murmured as he peered over at Long Feng, "and YOU know exactly where they are, don't you?"

Staring into the esper's deep, red eyes, for a second Long Feng felt a twinge of fear rush through his body.

"Guards, ATTACK!" he commanded as he turned around a attempted to escape.

Without wasting even a second, Accelerator dug his heel into the ground and sped forward at the remaining line of Dai Li agents, breaking the floor in the process; using both his hands, he planted his fists into the guts of two guards and sent them flying back into the wall. Turning to his right, before the nearest agent could retaliate, Accelerator blocked the man's vision with his hand and proceeded to stomp on the side of the guard's knee, causing it to snap as he fell to the floor. By this time, the other agents had regained their rock-gloves and aimed for Accelerator's head. Turning to glance at them, with a maniacal grin, he stepped to the side and allowed the attacks to move past him.

"You missed," he chuckled.

Keeping his fingers straightened, he felt flesh tear as he pierced through one of the Dai Li agent's chest; lifting the man's body off of the floor, he tossed the corpse onto the other guard, causing him to stumble and fall down. Walking over to the agent, who struggled to get his dead comrade off of him, looked up at Accelerator with fear in his eyes.

"Please, don't-"

The man's pleas went unanswered before his skull was shattered beneath the esper's foot. Watching from a safe distance, the other Dai Li agents stared on in horror at the sheer carnage that took place before them.

"What're you looking at?" Accelerator said with a sedated voice.

Taking gulps to swallow their fear, some of the guards let out war cries before running toward the esper in an effort to gain some kind of upper hand. Attacking the closest one to him – he honestly didn't care which – Accelerator punched him directly in the mouth, breaking his jaw and slamming him into the ground. But the esper wasn't done yet; gripping one of the party tables nearest him, he flung it over at the group of Dai Li agent's. Some of them were quick enough to dodge the object, but others were taken out by the speeding table. Thick, red blood splattered over the floor upon impact as lifeless bodies fell to the ground.

Before the agents who dodged his attack could get back to their feet, he was already in front of them – there were three left. Not even caring to put much emphasis into this one, he simply backhanded two of them into one another and watched as they flew high into the air before landing back down onto the floor, unconscious.

By this time, Aang and his friends where hurriedly leading the group of people out of the room and away from any kind of danger; the avatar didn't really have time to stop the blood lusted esper – he wasn't even sure if he could.

The final agent looked into Accelerator's uncaring eyes and fell to his knees with his hands clasped in front of him.

"Please," he began.

Accelerator considered killing him as well, but he realized Long Feng was nearing the exit. Weaving his way through the crowd that was already heading to the door in a panic, Long Feng tried to hide himself among the guests but he was quickly confronted by Aang.

"What's the matter with you?" the airbender began, "You put everyone in this room at risk."

"Foolish boy, if there's anyone who deserves the blame here, it's THAT monster," Long Feng screeched, pointing over at Accelerator.

The esper's clothes were now covered in blood as he stood over the final guard who seemed to be pleading with the white haired teen.

"J-just let me go…please. I-I don't want to die," he said, his fingers intertwined in a clasp.

Accelerator looked unmoved and instead of answering, raised his hand in a threatening fist as he aimed for the man's face.

"Say goodbye," he growled.

But before he could deliver the final blow, he heard someone call out to him.

"Accelerator!" Ty Lee gasped as she emerged from a room on the far end of the wall.

Following the wide-eyed brunette, Azula wandered out as well with an expression of surprise adorning her face as she looked upon the esper.

Ty Lee seemed overjoyed to see him, but her look of sheer excitement soon wandered into the territory of horror as she stared at all the bodies covered in blood that decorated the floor. Her eyes widened even more as she scanned the carnage; quickly, she placed her hand over her mouth in an effort not to vomit.

Azula stared at the room with her mouth agape, although she was not nearly as horrified as Ty Lee; Accelerator turned to them, his eyes shifting through a series of emotions – first, a slight relief that they weren't hurt (which surprised him), and second, a feeling of remorse at seeing Ty Lee's reaction to what he had done.

"You…how did you escape?" Long Feng demanded.

"You're guards were never an issue," Azula coldly informed, "we merely needed you to be distracted before we made our move."

Long Feng let out a frustrated huff, failing to think of anything as a reply.

"Wait, you're….that girl I fought on the drill," Aang practically whispered in surprise, "how did you get into Ba Sing Se?"

Azula smiled. She knew her cover had been blown – that all of their covers had been blown – but it was important to make it seem like that no longer mattered. She had to find a way to salvage the situation.

"There is nowhere you can hide from me, Avatar," she began, "even in the 'impenetrable city of Ba Sing Se', you cannot hope to escape the Fire Nation."

Aang swallowed, allowing the saliva to wet his dry throat.

"Whatever you're here to do…we're going to stop you," Sokka interjected.

The smile on Azula's face widened, "Fool. You cannot stop what you don't know."

As the Fire Princess bantered back and fourth with the avatar and his group, Accelerator's attention was grabbed by a series of cuts on Ty Lee's body. The girl had since removed her hands from her mouth, but she still looked obviously shaken; red gashed adorned her shoulders, arms, and hands.

Questioningly, ignoring the verbal battle between Azula and the Avatar, Accelerator approached Ty Lee who looked at him with a face that made him inwardly cringe – she looked like she was scared of him. But Accelerator made sure to be gentle as he ran his hands alongside her arm to emphasize the wounds.

"How did this happen?" he asked, causing her eyes to slightly soften.

Ty Lee nodded her head toward Long Feng, "That guy. He discovered me and Azula. He asked me a few questions, but when I refused to answer…." Her voice trailed off, as if she hesitated to relive the memory.

Accelerator sighed, "I understand," he said, "You don't have to explain."

His words were simple. Yet again, he had made her feel safe.

On the outside, Accelerator seemed calm and composed, but on the inside his rage was bubbling; looking over at Azula, he spotted a large, red bruise-like splotch on her cheek. He was mad now. It was almost surprising to him how angry he had gotten with just a few simple details.

"Long Feng," Accelerator said, cutting through the dialogue between Azula and Aang. His eyes were hidden beneath his white hair, casting a shadow over his face to conceal any details.

The man looked over at the esper, careful not to antagonize him any more than was needed.

"You better start running," the white haired teen growled as he slowly raised his voice. The veins in his neck and forehead popped out as he opened his mouth, "Cuz I'm gonna KILL you!"

Long Feng expected this, but he didn't have a way to deal with a situation like this; the first thing that came to his mind was a preemptive strike – bad idea.

After moving his hands in a circular pattern, he shot forth several stones that broke apart from the floor beneath him; without even blinking, the esper swatted the attack away as though it didn't even matter.

"I told you to run," he hissed, taking his first steps toward Long Feng.

Aang stepped in his way, facing him with a determined look, "No. I won't let you kill him."

"Well, then, I'll have to kill you!" he screamed as he lunged toward the airbender.

"NO!" Screamed Ty Lee from behind Accelerator.

The esper turned around, surprised to see Ty Lee slumped to the floor on her knees with tears streaming down her face.

"No…no more killing," she cried, "No more murder. No more death. Please…just…stop."

Accelerator stared back at her, his gaze landing on her pleading eyes; he then looked over at Azula, who stared down at Ty Lee with an equal amount of surprise evident on her face. He stood in silence, unsure of what to do next – the look in her eyes was too much for him to ignore.

He stared down at his hands and looked at the drops of blood that stained his skin – the blood of his enemies; for some reason, he continued to stare down at them as though they were a book that told him a story – a story that he didn't like. Turning his head to look over at the bodies that lay on the floor, Accelerator realized something:

He hated this part of himself.

He hated the fact that he would loose control. He hated the fact that he wouldn't even bat an eye at taking the life of another person. He hated the fact that he would enjoy it.

He hated how if affected those around him.

His hands slightly trembled as he closed them into tight fists.

"No more."

Those words echoed over and over again in his otherwise blank mind.

"…Fine," he said after a moment of silence, "No more."

"No more," he repeated, this time much more softly as he nodded his head with a newfound sense of understanding.

Turning to look at Ty Lee and Azula, he gave the first genuine smile he had in a while.

"Come one, let's go," he said.

**End of Chapter 24**

Author's Note: _What do you guys think? Did I rush the pacing of this chapter? One of the biggest concerns I had in this chapter was the fact that I knew I wanted Accelerator to come to some kind of epiphany regarding both his current and past actions – I just didn't know how I would do it. Anyway, before I conclude this note, I want you to partake in a quick little quiz._

_1) I want you to think of a number between 1 and 10_

_2) Multiply that number by 2._

_3) Multiply what you get from the second step by 5._

_4) Divide your current number by the original number you picked._

_5) Now, subtract 7 from the current number._

_If you got:_

_"1" – you did something wrong, go back and try again._

_"2" – you cheated because you knew how this worked._

_"3" – Leave a comment_

_Thanks!_


	25. Chapter 25: Finding Zuko

**Chapter 25: Finding Zuko**

The three of them exited through the main entrance of the palace; Long Feng and the Avatar hadn't attempted to stop them from leaving, lest they be forced to deal with Accelerator once more. By this time, the black sky of the night had been largely illuminated by the white sphere of the moon that levitated effortlessly in space. Accelerator looked up at it, his blank hair blowing gently in the silent wind; he had never gazed up at the moon with so much intensity as he had right now – the celestial body mirrored how he felt inside – an emerging brightness within a sea of dark.

He turned around and glanced back at the two girls; Ty Lee was busy tending to her wounds, while Azula simply stared off into space as if she was contemplating something. The three of them moved in an almost linear fashion, down the front steps of the palace and off onto the street.

None of them said it, but it was obvious what they were all thinking, 'What do we do now?'

Although Accelerator had come to a soothing sense of self-realization, he was still aware of the fact that none of them had any real plan at this point.

Sighing loud enough to break the silence, he was the first one to speak, "Well, what do we do now? We didn't exactly complete our mission back there."

Azula said nothing and instead stared down at the ground.

Ty Lee lifted her head to the esper, "I don't know. I guess we meet up with the troops outside of Ba Sing Se, right Azula?"

Once again, the Fire Nation princess didn't talk, she just continued to walk alongside them at a constant pace.

"Hey, you ok?" Accelerator wondered with a hint of worry.

"Hm?" Azula finally said, lifting her head to look at him as if coming out of a trance, "Did you say something?"

"I said: what are we going to do now? What's our next step?" he asked again.

Azula frowned, "There is no next step," she said, returning her gaze to the ground in front of her, "Don't you see? That was it – our final chance to salvage this mission. We had the advantage of entering the city without them knowing, but….it didn't matter."

Suddenly, Ty Lee's eyes were drawn to something that caused her to tap Azula on the shoulder; after getting her attention, the brown-haired girl pointed toward a relatively small building with her mouth agape.

The building was moderately sized – not too big, not too small – at it didn't look like it was a residential house of any kind. Rather, the building was a restaurant, or more precisely a Tea House, with the title "Pao Family Tea House" etched in black ink just above the entrance. The door was propped open, revealing the inside of the establishment; reddish-orange lights from within the building spilled out onto the surface of the street.

However, the sight of the tea house wasn't what had drawn the two girls' attention; inside of the building, beyond the tables full of late-night customers, were two men who were for some reason engaged in a sword battle. One of them held two identical blades that were quite thin and curved slightly at the end, enhancing its deadly nature; he kept a long blade of grass positioned neatly in the corner of his mouth, even despite the fact that he was fighting. His clothing was a combination of red and blue, except for two shoulder pads of varying colors.

The other fighter seemed to be just as unique as the first; similar to his opponent, he was duel-wielding two identical swords that whistled through the air with every swing. However, unlike the other, his attire did not seem to be battle-ready. He wore a brownish-green gown that a finished with a white apron that wrapped around his waist. But one of the main features of this fighter was the fact that he sported a nasty scar on the left side of his face.

The girls starred on in surprise at the pair locked in a furious battle of blades; Accelerator, who hadn't noticed they had stopped until he was a good 20 paces away, rejoined the two and looked into the store.

"What's the matter?" he asked, "Have you never seen a drunk bar fight before?"

The joke washed over the two of them as they remained intrigued by the two men.

"Hello?" Accelerator said with a hum, waving a hand in front of their faces, "Is anybody home?"

Still unaffected by his antics, the girls watched the fight with an almost admirable amount of focus; Accelerator, realizing he wasn't going to break them of the spectacle, begrudgingly turned to watch the battle as well.

The two men picked up their pace as the battle evolved, striking and blocking each other's blow with their blade to produce small sparks from the impact. At one point in time, they even hoped up on tables and used the surrounding objects in the store to assist them as well. Eventually, the battle moved outside, providing the fight with a slight change of scenery.

Realizing that they were just watching the fight out in the open, Azula and Ty Lee grabbed a confused Accelerator and pulled him behind a nearby building corner. In an effort to continue witnessing the two warriors, Azula and Ty Lee peeked their heads around to watch.

The battle began to slow down, but it wasn't because either of the fighters were losing their stamina; apparently, someone had called two guards over to deal with the commotion. The three teens couldn't quite hear what was being said, but it looked like the boy with the reed in his mouth was about to get arrested. Sure enough, the guards took him by the arms and began to drag him away, but not before he could say his final parting words, "They're Fire Nation! You have to believe me!"

The sounds of his shouting pleas drifted off into the distance as he was dragged away, until even the echoes of his voice faded. The other fighter, whom Accelerator could see was probably around his age, retired back into the tea house as an older man escorted him in with a guiding arm.

"So, this is where Zuzu was hiding," Azula whispered to herself with a smirk.

"Who?" Accelerator asked, becoming angry that he didn't have any idea what was going on.

"Zuko," Ty Lee said to fill him in, "He's Azula's older brother."

"'Brother?!'" Accelerator practically screamed out, but was quickly shushed by a flustered Ty Lee.

Regaining his composure, the esper turned to Azula, "Your brother? How did your brother end up in an Earth Nation city? Is he under cover or something?"

"As if," Azula coughed, "That fool probably doesn't even have a clue that the avatar is here. He is simply a coward."

Accelerator detected a hint of disgust with that final statement she made, but he decided to ignore it.

"It doesn't sound like he's a part of the Fire Nation anymore," the esper stated, but the way he spoke made it sound like a question.

"He's not. The idiot was banished by my father," Azlua informed quickly.

Accelerator said nothing and instead grunted in response; looking into the tea shop at the boy, he realized that the large, red scar apparent on his face looked like a burn mark. He didn't want to make any random assumptions, but he could probably guess where those wounds came from.

The sound of Ty Lee's voice broke him from his analyzing stare, "What do we do, Azula? I doubt Zuko is gonna like seeing us here," she said, much to the Fire princess' annoyance.

"Seeing Zuko here was a stroke of luck," Azula said, "our last plan failed; however, if we can get Zuko to join us, there may still be a way for us to salvage this mission."

"It doesn't sound like he would be that welcoming to you," Accelerator noted, "How are you going to get him to join us."

"Oh, don't worry. I have my ways," the princess hinted with a slight lilt in her voice, causing Accelerator to raise his eyebrows in subdued curiosity.

"Ok, well we can't approach him right now. There are too many people in that shop," he said.

"Agreed," Azula returned, "That's why we will have to wait until they leave."

"When's that going to be?" Ty Lee questioned.

"I'm not quite sure. We'll have to wait and see," Azula said with crossed arms, "but you won't be here for that," she said as she turned to the brunette.

"What do you mean?" Ty Lee wondered.

"As much as you may want to stay, I need you to join up with Mai and the rest of the troops to relay information," she explained, keeping her vision secured on the tea shop.

"What kind of information?" the wide-eyed girl questioned.

"You'll have to tell them that our initial plan of assassinating the Earth King failed; however, tell them also that we have located prince Zuko and are currently working with him to apprehend the Avatar."

"'Working with him'?" Accelerator repeated in an almost astonished fashion, "We haven't even talked to the guy yet."

"I told you, I have ways to persuade him," Azula calmly replied, turning to the confused esper.

"Do you understand, Ty Lee?" she asked, prompting the girl to nod her head.

"You'll have to leave as soon as possible. Because our cover was blown at the party, I'm sure the Earth King's agents will be doing everything they can right now to block off any exits so they can trap and overwhelm us – you have to leave the city before that happens."

Ty Lee's face grew serious as she listened to Azula's words, taking them in as if they were gospel.

"One more thing," Azula added on, "Tell them to await any further instructions until morning. When the sun arises, they must return to the Fire Nation and submit the information we have garnered here for later use."

After nodding once more in complete understanding, Ty Lee wished the two remaining teens good luck as she snuck off into the shadows of the alleyway and disappeared beyond a corner. Turning their attention back to the tea shop, which now already seemed like it was about to close, Accelerator and Azula waited patiently for Zuko to leave.

Finally, after all of the customers had left and the employees finished cleaning the shop, Zuko exited the restaurant and headed down the road accompanied by a much older man. The two of them talked as they walked down the almost empty street that was bordered on either side by silent buildings. The old man, unlike Zuko, talked quite a bit as the two of them continued on through the city.

"Do you know who that guy is that your brother's talking to?" Accelerator asked.

"Please, refrain from calling him 'my brother'," she growled as the two of them pursued, "But to answer your question – yes, I know who he is. He's actually the reason why I decided to keep you here and not Ty Lee. That's my uncle, and he may not look it, but he's fairly powerful; if the two of them were to attack, I'd hate to say it, but I don't think I could beat them alone."

"Hmmm. I see," Accelerator said, staring intently at the old man. Strange, he didn't look that powerful.

The two of them remained silent as they snuck behind the pair in pursuit.

"I was wondering," Azula suddenly began, refraining from looking at Accelerator, "back at the palace…why didn't you just kill everyone? It was obvious you had the upper hand; if you wanted to, you could've killed the Earth King's assistant and the avatar without even batting an eye."

"I just realized something is all," the esper said.

"And what exactly is it?" Azula asked.

"I realized that I hate killing," he stated bluntly.

"Hm. Well it seemed as though you murdered too many of those guards in the palace to be someone that 'hates killing'," the princess said with a smirk.

Accelerator looked over at her, staring deeply into her eyes.

"That's exactly why I hate it," he spat back forcefully, his tone serious, "It's way too easy to take a life; way too easy to kill. If you would've asked me a while ago what I thought about murder, I would've said it was quick and necessary. And if you would've asked me if I cared about the lives I took, I would've said that they were nothing to me – just lambs led to the slaughter."

They continued to creep further down the street, careful to keep a respectable distance between them and their targets so as not to alert them; using the darkness of the building's shadows, they moved slowly along outer sides of the road, sidling up next to the bases of building walls.

"And you're different now?" Azula said with a little levity in her voice, trying her best to stay silent, but she genuinely wanted to know the answer.

"Yes. Back then, I didn't have anything to aspire to – nothing but absolute power. But 'absolute power' isn't a motivation, it's a goal; there was nothing that was special to me, nothing to protect or yearn for, at least until…."

"Until…what?" Azula said, her face rigid with curiosity.

"Until her," he quietly spoke; although this time, the words came out very quiet and hushed.

After glancing over at her brother and uncle, who still hadn't become aware of their presence, making sure that they hadn't left her line-of-sight, Azula then turned back to the esper

"Who?" she questioned, forgoing politeness in pursuit of answers.

Opening his mouth to respond, the white-haired teen abruptly stopped before he spoke and immediately pointed in the direction of the two targets. Azula swung her head to meet the trajectory of his pointed finger.

Zuko and Iroh had turned off from the main road and were now entering a moderately-sized building, possibly an apartment complex judging by its size and style. Losing sight of the two figures as they walked through the door, Accelerator and Azula looked at one another, each studying the other expectantly for answers.

"What now?" Accelerator asked, "We can't exactly walk in the building like we own the place."

Azula glared at the front entrance in deep thought. "Perhaps. Although, judging by the state of it, this apartment complex isn't upscale; in fact, its probably the opposite – it's lower class."

Accelerator raised a questioning eye brow. "Yeah, so? Why's that important?" he asked.

"It's important because it means that they don't have money to spare, so they probably don't have any guards on payroll. What's more, of the employee's who work here, I doubt any of them have any combat training."

"So, what are you proposing? Do we just bust in there and take out the employees?"

She slightly shook her head and turned to him with a grin, "We may not even have to."

**End of Chapter 25**

Author's Note: _Well, well, well….what do we have here? It seems that you all have been starving for another chapter; don't worry, I am here to provide you with all the literary sustenance you'll need._

_First of all, I'd like to address where I've been for the past few…months? (has it actually been that long?) Now, I have already addressed this at the end of chapter 22, but I think some clarification is in order._

_Well, as you probably know, during the time of my hiatus, the Corona Virus has been taking the world by storm, and a lot of people have been worrying about what the future holds. If you're wondering – No, I wasn't affected by the virus (thank god), and family is fine as well. My thoughts and prayers go out to everyone who was affected by this._

_The reason why I didn't (and couldn't) update the story is pretty simple and upfront. I don't have a laptop or device that can upload documents to any online website, so I was literally stuck with nothing to do. I had already finished a few of them beforehand though, I just couldn't upload them. Sorry! Hope you understand. I'll be working on future chapters as often as I can, so you can expect the story to continue._

_And now, I can finally say that horrible 7 letter word; the one that should never be spoken aloud; the one that instills fear into any who read it:_

**_COMMENT_**


	26. Chapter 26: Azula's Deal

**Chapter 26: Azula's Deal**

Zuko and Iroh lazily carried themselves upstairs, holding onto the support beam as they ascended the wooden steps. Their room was located on the second floor, sandwiched between the first and third, where they had to endure loud noises on both ends.

In the room beneath them, the tenant would often meddle with bamboo flutes that were horrifyingly off-key, and he would play his instruments well into the night. In the room above them, they were forced to listen to constant scratching and thumping noises, as if furniture was constantly being moved – these noises would often begin very early in the morning.

As they came to their door, Iroh took out the small, brass room key and proceeded to slide it delicately into the lock; upon hearing a faint _click_ sound, an indication that the door was now open, Iroh moved to allow Zuko entrance first into the room before following closely behind him. The two of them fully entered the apartment and Iroh finally shut the door; after engaging the internal lock, the gray-haired man then tossed his keys onto the wooden table that sat in the middle of the dinning area.

"Whew, long day today," Iroh exclaimed, stretching his arms high above his head in an effort to relax his muscles.

Zuko said nothing in response, and instead headed over to the bedroom area. Lying down fully on the mat, Zuko's silent demeanor continued as he stared up at the ceiling – he appeared to be in deep thought.

"Zuko? Are you okay?" Iroh asked with obvious worry.

The prince said nothing once again, ignoring the pressing voice of his uncle.

"Would you like some tea?" Iroh wondered.

Before the teen could respond, not that he would've, Iroh continued nonetheless, "You know what, I think you need some good, relaxing tea. It'll help take your mind off of things."

Turning his back to the still mute Zuko, Iroh trotted over to the kitchen and began to start a small fire with the stove; the apartment didn't have much, but at least it was equipped with a functioning stove and oven – the better to make tea with.

Listening to the clinking of clattering dishes and cups, Zuko's eyes scanned the blank white canvas of the ceiling above him; allowing his lids to fully shut, the young firebender tried to calm himself down, to relax if possible. The events that transpired not hours ago, were still fresh in his mind, and he couldn't help but replay the interaction over again, like a mental projection, in his head.

Jet, that's what the guy's name was, seemed to be nothing more than a lunatic, bent on the total destruction on anything that was relatively fire-nation related; despite the fact that Jet was so obviously insane, Zuko couldn't help but accept the fact that his unhinged ranting had actually been quite accurate. He had accused Zuko and his uncle of being fire-nation spy's, but even though that wasn't entirely true, it had been close enough to the truth that it actually scarred Zuko a bit. If Jet was aware of their identity, how many others were suspecting the same thing?

Zuko shifted his position, turning his body to the side, now lying comfortably on his right shoulder while the left one slumped inward, toward his chest and the floor. The fight with Jet was quick, lasting only a few minutes, but it was long enough and intense enough for Zuko to start thinking about things that he had long since forgotten. It was like a jump-start; it made him question certain fundamental elements about his current situation. Is this what he wanted? To live out a peaceful life here, in Ba Sing Se? No. He didn't want to make a life here, didn't want to become used to the hustle and bustle of everyday life, one of the cogs in a machine.

So, what did he want? Was it to be accepted into the Fire Nation again? To finally be acknowledged and loved by his father, who he had so desperately wanted to impress? At first, he thought 'no', but even those words seemed hollow. If he were given a chance, one final chance to be taken back into the Fire Nation's gracious arms, would he take it?

Zuko pondered over each question as though the answer to one of them would bring him the happiness and comfort that he always yearned for, as though answering at least one of them would get him out of this hellish nightmare that he was living.

Suddenly there was a knock on the front door. Zuko rolled over to his back and stared at the wooden entrance across the room.

"I'll get it," Iroh sang in a jovial voice as he wandered over to the door.

Quickly unlocking the bolts that held the door in frame, Iroh then briskfully opened it and peered through the entryway.

"Hello, how may I help-….."

His voice seemed to halt abruptly, as if the sound of a hiccup or a burp threatened to make its way through his mouth; there was a short catch of his own breath at the end of his words as well that somewhat worried Zuko.

"Uncle…who is it?" he finally asked, wondering why the man had stopped speaking so suddenly.

Glancing over at the rigid stillness of his uncle's body, Zuko twitched with confusion at the expression that adorned Iroh's face – was a mixture of disbelief, horror, and everything in between.

"Well, uncle?" came a female voice from beyond the door, "Aren't you going to let me in?"

Zuko's own body seemed to seize up at the tone of the voice. There were a number of things that came to his mind all at once, a multitude of clues that informed him of who stood beyond that door, and his mouth suddenly became dry. He recognized everything about that voice – the lilt, the pitch, the tone, the pacing, even use of the word 'uncle'. There was no denying it – Azula was in Ba Sing Se.

Stunned with surprise and honest-to-god horror, Iroh remained rooted in his spot for what seemed like an eternity; his legs refused to move and his arms felt heavy and slow, but his mind was going into over-drive.

'Azula? What is Azula doing here in Ba Sing Se? How did she find us? What does she want?'

A rush of questions flooded into his mind, but he was snapped out of his mental shock when he heard Azula's voice pierce his mental fort.

"Come now, Uncle, don't be rude," the dark-haired teen said in a mocking tone, "Aren't you going to let me in? It's freezing out here, you know."

She was just as incessant and mischievous as he remembered; he could sense no change in her demeanor, nor any obvious shift of her treatment towards him. For a moment, he considered attacking her, a quick preemptive strike, just to render her defenseless; if she took her time to track them down, then her reason for being here couldn't be good.

His grip on the door knob tightened for a minute as he stared into Azula's eyes, mulling over what his move would be during the next few seconds. He almost did it, almost attacked her outright, but he eventually decided not to. For one, the apartment complex didn't have a whole lot of auditory shielding, so whatever would happen here could carry to every other area of the building – he couldn't have that. The second reason for not attacking her, however, quickly revealed itself in the form of a white-haired boy who stood mere feet behind Azula.

For a moment, Iroh hadn't even noticed the boy, perhaps because he was already so focused on Azula, or perhaps because the child had only recently shown himself. Whatever the reason, Iroh realized that he couldn't risk attacking Azula – not here, not now anyway.

Loosening his grip on the smooth, brass surface of the over-used door knob, Iroh finally backed into the room to allow Azula entrance.

The fire princess smiled and nodded as she took a step into her uncle's living quarters.

"Thank you," she said, mockingly.

Fully entering the apartment, she took her time scanning the area, glancing at the condition of the walls and the furniture.

"Disgusting," she noted with a revolted face.

She turned to the boy sitting on the mat further into the room, "Zuzu, this is no place for a Fire Nation Prince," she stated, staring down at him.

"Ex – fire nation prince," Zuko corrected, making a point not to blink as he glared back at her, "Don't you remember? Father banished me from returning."

Glancing up at nothing in particular, Azula gave a thoughtful look to her brother, "Yes, I remember. Don't you know that I was there?"

"Of course I know that, I also know that you enjoyed it," he replied viciously, "I know that you wanted me gone."

"Oh please, Zuzu, don't be so dramatic," she said with a slight chuckle, "Father banished you for his own reasons. I had nothing to do with it."

"You expect me to believe that?" he questioned, now rising to his feet from the mat, "You expect me to believe a liar?!"

"You don't have to believe me, you just have to listen," she said calmly, no longer smiling.

Leaning back slightly, obviously not concerned with what she had to say to him, Zuko folded his arms in front of him.

"No. Get out," he instructed.

For several moments, the entire room was filled with an air of stifling tension, a silence that weighed throughout the apartment as both siblings glared at each other in expectance of the other. Zuko remained rooted in his spot, arms crossed over his chest as he waited for Azula to finally leave and take her scheming thoughts with her. The black haired princess rocked her head back, a small smirk gracing her face, "I can't leave, Zuzu. You see….i'm in quite a predicament, and I need your help."

"I don't care. Get out," Zuko repeated, this time abandoning his place in front of her and walking towards the door. Grabbing the wooden frame firmly and holding the entrance open, he signaled for Azula to leave the premesis.

"Do you really want me to leave, Zuzu?" she sung, her voice softly carrying through the damp air.

"Yes," he stated, not wishing to repeat himself once more.

"Even if I can offer you a chance to return back to the Fire Nation? Back home, a chance at redemption?" she asked.

At first, the Fire Nation prince said nothing and simply stared quietly at her; however, even from this distance, Azula could tell that his hands were trembling slightly. She had gotten him curious – now, all she needed to do was drag him in further.

Not allowing him to respond, she continued to speak as she slowly approached him, "Haven't you wanted a chance like this? Ever since your banishment, you've been searching needlessly for your ticket back into father's good graces – _The Avatar_. You've been looking for him haven't you?"

Zuko flinched, but didn't dare release his grip on the door, as if it was a tether of some kind that kept him rooted in reality. His eyes narrowed as she neared him, but he didn't make a move to stop her.

"I have a proposition for you, dear brother," she said, her words like venom, "I'm on a mission to apprehend the avatar, and I have reason to believe that he is somewhere in Ba Sing Se. Due to…certain unfortunate events, I have been forced to seek additional assistance to complete my task."

For a few seconds, Zuko was silent, taking in Azula's speech; he definitely didn't take her words at face value – after all, she's not above lying to get her way. Although, given the fact that she is even in Ba Sing Se, means that there must be some truth to her story; however, truth is often times used to conceal deception.

"Zuko," Iroh said from the other side of the door way, "You've come so far from being the person you once were; you are now so close to a better life….don't throw it away for her."

There was worry in his voice, Zuko could hear it; hidden in the rough and guttural inflections of his tone was a hint of concern and unease.

"Don't worry, Uncle," Azula said, turning to the old man, "I'm also willing to extend this offer to you; it's been quite a while since you've been home."

"The Fire Nation is no longer the home that I loved," he spat back, the creases in his forehead wrinkling with annoyance.

With the confident and overly cocky smile still on her face, Azula merely let out a chuckle that rocked her head back, but she didn't respond to her uncle's remark.

"Well, Zuzu?" she asked, her attention now back on her brother.

Zuko still stood next to the open door, but the hand that once gripped the frame now hung lifelessly at his side; he stared at the floor in serious thought, studying the uneven wooden ground as if the answer might come to him from between one of the boards.

There was silence in the air as the former prince waged an internal battle, one that shook him to the core; the offer that Azula had presented was one that he had been hoping for all this time – a chance to return to his kingdom, his home.

After a few minutes of excruciating stillness, the dark-haired teen shifted uncomfortably in his spot.

"If I agree to your terms," he began, still glaring intensely at the floor, "How can I be sure that you won't betray me once we're done and leave me here to rot?"

Flicking her hair to the side and away from her face, Azula shot Zuko her same confident smile, "You can't be sure if I'm lying or not. But one thing is for sure: this is your one and ONLY chance you'll have if you ever want to return to the Fire Nation."

He gritted his teeth as his eyes sped up from the ground and looked into her golden irises; Azula was awfully calculating and manipulative, especially when she wanted something, and this interaction seemed to solidify her cunning nature. Zuko was stuck – she had trapped him both ways. If he agreed to her proposition, she would hold all the power and could change her mind if she wanted to; however, on the other hand, if he refused her offer, he could potentially been throwing away his best bet for returning to the Fire Nation, and regaining the respect of his father.

"Fine. I'm in," he said.

"Zuko!" Iroh gasped in protest, "Please, think about this! We've built up a life here in Ba Sing Se, do you really want to throw it all away?"

"No, YOU'VE built a life here, uncle!" Zuko screamed back, slightly startling the older gentleman, "I never wanted this life. I don't want to stay here the rest of my life serving tea, that's not what I want to do. My place isn't here, it's in the Fire Nation."

Azula grinned widely as the bickering between uncle and nephew unfolded; such chaos brought her joy, although she couldn't help but be inwardly intrigued by their conversation.

"Zuko –" Iroh tried once again in a feeble attempt to convince his nephew of the horrible mistake he would be making, but he was quickly cut off.

"That's enough, uncle!" the boy yelled, silencing the old man, "I have to do this!"

The argument was short but intense, and by the end of it, both sides of the altercation avoided the other's glance, as if by embarrassment.

"Are you done?" Azula asked, leaning against the wooden banister that bordered the frame of the door's entrance.

Zuko didn't reply, but nodded his head in acknowledgement.

"Good," she curtly continued, walking further into the apartment, "Then as long as you have agreed on my proposition, I hope you understand my need for shelter for the night."

"You're not going to be staying here," Iroh grunted in irritation.

"No?" she questioned, feigning a hurt expression, "Are you really going to kick me out into the cold, dear brother?" she then turned her attention to Zuko, who seemed uncomfortable under her gaze.

"Are you going to leave me out in the cold? Especially considering the fact that I am the key to bringing you back to the Fire Nation?"

Although she maintained the fake, pleading face, the way she spoke denoted a dangerous sense of warning – Azula was his only chance to returning home, and she knew it.

Taking in a breath and breathing out uneasily, Zuko sighed.

"Ok, you can stay here – but only for the night," he said.

He turned to Iroh, expecting his uncle to raise his voice in defiance, but instead the old man remained silent. It was obvious that he didn't agree with Zuko's judgment, but he decided to remain quiet while he watched the situation unfold.

"Don't you have a Fire Nation camp nearby or something? Also, where are your guards? I doubt you came here alone," the dark-haired boy said.

Azula lost her 'begging face' and now became serious for the first time since she first entered the room.

"I'm afraid not. This mission is much too important for me to entrust it to any random guard."

A concerned look crossed Zuko's face, "Wait, you don't have any guards? How are we supposed to capture the avatar?"

"Don't worry. I have a secret weapon," she snickered, more to herself than anything.

"'A secret weapon'? What is it?" Zuko asked.

Azula grinned again, expecting her brother to ask; she pointed over to the boy beside her.

The boy with the white hair.

**End of Chapter 26**

Author's Note: _Hey, guys, It's me again. How are you all doing? – ha ha, I don't care. Anyway, as some of you guys might know, I haven't updated the story in quite some time, so it makes sense that there are some reviews that I couldn't exactly read during that time. I would first like to say thank you to those who genuinely enjoy the story so far – you guys are probably the main reason why I'm still continuing the story. Although I'm aware that most of you may like the story, I know that there are some who dislike how I've written Accelerator._

_The main critique that I've seen regarding Accelerator's personality is the recognition that he isn't a character who lusts for power, so-to-speak – instead, he prefers to live a peaceful life, but the only way he believes he can secure this life is by proving that he is beyond reproach in terms of power so that no one would ever dream of challenging him._

_While this is most definitely true, and a fairly good summary of his personality in terms of motivation, it is also the case that he is not above simply wanting to prove that he is more powerful than everybody else, for no reason other than just a display of power. His behavior is also not entirely explained by him just wanting to 'live peacefully'; Accelerator is arguably the most ruthless, arrogant, and blood-thirsty character throughout the entire anime (At least at the beginning). So, while Accelerator is most definitely my personal favorite character in the anime, I cannot ignore the massive contradiction between his goals and the actions he takes to reach them._

_With this being said, I will acknowledge that, as a writer, I have taken certain liberties in regards to certain changes within his character; however, I believe these changes to be mostly minor and inconsequential. Furthermore, throughout the story I have attempted to gradually change Accelerator's cynical view of the world; the point of this fanfiction is not to keep the characters as they were, but to change them according to the circumstances they undergo, while also maintaining the main aspect of their personality._

_If any of guys disagree with me, even if you enjoy the story so far, please let me know your view of my reasoning in the comments; do you think my assessment of Accelerator's character is correct, or do you have an even better one? I would actually love to read your opinions, and maybe I'll try to reply to you in the comments if I find it interesting._

_Anyway, I hope you all are doing ok, and I'll talk to you guys in the next chapter. Later!_


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